


The Greenwood Chronicles Book 1 "Of Fearsome Forests"

by MoonGlum



Series: Greenwood Chronicles [1]
Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: CIRCLE OF LIFE, Creatures, Fluff, Horror, In depth description of "creatures and beasts", Main character loves his Kneazle get over it, Suspence, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, adventure and mischief around every corner, beasts - Freeform, goblins have feelings too, house elves are people too, literally too many creatures involved it will have to be shared between lots of books
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-27
Updated: 2020-06-13
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:14:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 25,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24407875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoonGlum/pseuds/MoonGlum
Summary: In search of his best friend Jeffrey over hears about an internship for witches and wizards. Although it seemed like a theoretical proposal the young wizard takes it upon himself to talk to Dumbledore about work over the summer. Given his background Dumbledore finds a place that he thinks he'll fit in just fine.
Series: Greenwood Chronicles [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1762594
Comments: 1
Kudos: 2





	1. A New Year

**Author's Note:**

> This work is inspired by both the Harry Potter franchise and the works of another author by the Username ArmetisGirl on Fanfiction.net the work is called "New Blood" and it is a great read. This work is going to happen in the similar setting and timeline. However, this starts in Harry's second year at Hogwarts. Things will be inspired from this authors' writing but the overall story will vary completely in terms of what direction these characters will be headed. So for the sake of continuity there will be little to no contact with any major characters and if there are there will be minimal amounts of exposure to them as to not disrupt the plot of either work. Other than that have a good read and enjoy. Also be gentle I'm not the best writer and some helpful feedback would be great! Thanks in advance.

The room was spacious so long as you did not consider the amount of people inside. Quills scratching on parchment rang more like rats’ claws along drywall. Only to be disturbed by the brief tinkling of the quill against the ink well which gave Jeffrey chills. In all honesty being confined into a space like this working at a desk made his hands sweat and his toes want to curl in discomfort. There was something that needed to be done. Many books were piled by his desk and he did not even know what was going to happen next. He really wanted to get back to school at Hogwarts. There was no reason in his mind that doing an internship was a good idea in the wizarding world. It was just as bad if not potentially worse than doing one in the muggle world. The musty smell of the pages and dust along the leather binding made his nose feel like it was being coated in chalk dust. All that could run through Jeffrey’s mind was the incredible difficulty it took for him to concentrate on the task at hand. The room was only ten by ten meters which only gave them enough room for four desks given the volume of books they were all fumbling through and papers stacking up only to get whisked away. So as expected Jeffrey sat on a stool whilst the pile of books continued grow more and more. Each slapping book on the pile caused a new wave of dust to kick up into the air. The only reprieve was when an elderly but energetic hand slapped him on the back.

“Hello there Jeffrey how goes the internship?” as the oddly spry man caused Jeffrey to jump slightly from his studies and moved a stack of books to prop himself on as he talked, “Such an interesting idea your what was your friends name? Hermagone?”

“Oh sorry Mr. Scamander” as Jeffrey stood up out of respect almost knocking over his inkwell and quill awkwardly fumbling about before stacking them on a new pile of books, “And her name is Hermione and she’s not a friend she’s just a girl I know of in Hogwarts” he looked sheepishly at his feet this time, “I overheard the idea from her and Snape while I was searching Gustave.”

“Ah yes!” Scamander’s eyes lit up with excitement almost driving him from his pile of books, “The dwarf kneazle such a wonderful companion if I may add! The best thing about Gustave is that since he is a dwarf not only is he small but look at these cute little legs!” as Scamander pulled out a photo of the kneazle. It was utterly adorable as the lion tail swayed to the sides along with its wide eyes as it was clear Scamander was retaining its attention with a treat on a stick while the photo was being taken.

“I remember Gustave you gave him to me before I attended by first year.” at this point neither Jeffrey or Scamander could tell if that was a question or a statement, “I just had to leave him with my parents while I work here.”

“Aw well that’s a shame.” his frown was emphasised even further with his multitude of wrinkles, “you know what you should have something like this!” he once again perked up as he brought a suitcase to his side.

The suitcase was brown and tattered over the years. It looked like it was from the early twenties at the best. Jeffrey was surprised that it was still holding together. He had never seen Scamander’s suitcase before. Or to be more specific he never saw it open. The leather was torn and pealed back around some of the corners and rust hugged around the hinges. It was a terrible combination of old and weathered but seemed to be holding together if not, then just barely. From the looks of it and the shimmer and glint in Scamander’s eyes it looked like both the suitcase and him had been together through everything. Jeffrey could only wonder the stories Scamander could tell him. He was the most interesting person in his mind to talk to. Scamander was his idol to put it in simplest terms. The wizard was one of the best Magizoologists that Jeffrey could ever encounter. It was amazing how well he held himself together over the years and given the experiences Jeffrey heard in the rumour mill at Hogwarts. He was an absolute legend. With any hope he could end up like Newt in all his glory by the end of his life at best. It took several minutes for the fact that Newt had been sitting there on a pile of books staring at him after giving a long and detailed explanation of how his briefcase functioned. Had Jeffrey paid attention to anything that Newt said he would have learned he preferred it to be called a briefcase and not a suitcase. Although it took too long for Jeffrey to get back from his attention to detail on his idol. The only thing that took him away from his observations was the intense amount of sweat that seemed to have clung to the small webbing between his fingers as the scratching of quills along parchment roared back into his sensory input.

“You know something?” as Scamander gave him a quizzical look, “You seem a little like me when I was your age.” taking some time to prop himself off the pile of books he gave him a look that suggested they were going on for a brief walk.

“How so?” Jeffrey’s heart pounded heavily as he jumped up from his stool trying to gather his personal notebook and writing tools as Newt made his way towards the opposite end of the room, “Oh you’re headed out now” as he continued to fumble with his things as he slid between the desks trying to catch up to Newt, “Am I getting fired? Is that a thing?”

“You’re not getting fired” he turned to Jeffrey now more confused than he was earlier, “You’re like me because you do not function well in an office environment. You would prefer being out and about studying mystical beasts and having adventures. Trust me I know.” As he patted Jeffrey along the back as they made their way out of the building stumbling into the cobblestone road. The sun was now setting but the local of where they were giving them a good vantage point of the sea, “mind if I see your notes?” as he held a hand towards him.

“O-oh sure.” as Jeffrey started to fumble through his belongings wondering where on earth his notebook was placed only to find it under his arm opposite of his shoulder bag, “Sorry Sir.”

“It’s fine and call me Newt.” his eyes gleamed a bit as he took Jeffrey’s notebook, “Now don’t get me wrong you are like me in the matter that you are funny and awkward.”

Jeffrey could not help but shrug in agreement at that statement. He was not the most comfortable person in his skin at the best of times. There were only three classes that he was terribly good at in his first year. Astronomy, Potions, and Herbology. Snape was terribly harsh, but then again, he took it as a way for him to improve on becoming even better at potions. He was not an amazing student, he deeply regretted not getting in the top ten, having gotten in the top thirty but that also showed he was not the worst student either. Astronomy was something that came to him easily almost to the point of where it was boring. His father is a doctorate of the muggle study of the topic and he had read his father’s library several times over concerning the subject. It was a point of interest at one point but shortly after completing all the reading it had become bothersome and boring to him. Herbology was just as interesting as potions because he did not have to worry about being cooped up. In that manner Scamander was right. He did not like being in a room or an office for that matter. Charms was too noisy on a good day. He even brought over headphones to assist in him regulating his auditory feedback. It was one of the problems that Jeffrey faced while at Hogwarts. Sure there were times in potions where there would be a flash of light or loud noise and the same could be said of herbology but he found them interesting and was willing to sacrifice discomfort to maintain his focus on his subjects of interest. That and his wand did not feel the most comfortable in his hand even though he would occasionally mock Ollivander about how “the wand chooses the wizard”. Jeffrey’s wand was like holding a dried slug in his hand.

Jeffrey’s father, Gerald, was a muggle and was always busy with his head in the stars and feet on the ground. He wrote a multitude of books based on the constellations and their cultural and societal importance in the post-modern era. Her mother, Miriam, on the other hand was a full-blown witch although she kept her witching life cloaked around her husbands’ interest of astrology and it was due to that interest, they had first met each other. Their first date was on a new moon the night he finished submitting his doctoral dissertation. They took a basket picnic out to a nearby hill overlooking the university he studied at. Miriam joked about having him make a wish as they watched shooting stars knowing fully well that he would give in to the opportunity and wish for them to be together forever. It was six months after that moment they had become engaged and three years after that they got married on New Year’s Day. They had four kids, but they were all squibs until they had Jeffrey. Gerald was terribly concerned as strange things started to happen as Jeffrey grew up. There were many times Miriam had to cover for him. Like when he was chasing brownies in the backyard as a toddler, turning legless lizards into noodle balloons, and the space incident of eighty-six. Gerald was pressing on getting him tested for his odd behaviour and the strange circumstances that surrounded him. Miriam was terribly pleased when she received Jeffrey’s letter to Hogwarts. In that moment Miriam was able to talk Gerald into letting him attend a “private school” for particularly special children. He found it odd to send his son away to a special school, but the summer had proved to be immensely helpful for their relationship. That summer Jeffrey had full blown conversations with Gerald and that meant the world to him. Jeffrey and his other siblings had all pretty much left the nest at this time and even then, Gerald was on brilliant terms with all of them. Now granted when Jeffrey was five, he had read his father’s works and talked to him about that, but it was not the same since Gerald had written all the books he read. To Gerald’s understanding Jeffrey was just vomiting information from that point until he had come back from Hogwarts. Then he started to explain the property of plants found in their back yard. Brewing and mixing herbs that seemed to have built upon general wellness. Something was now scratching the back of his head again as he was once again lost in thought gazing out to the setting sun.

“Well I have to admit I am impressed” and those words made Jeffrey feel like he had Cornish pixies inside his stomach, “I have to admit not all Magizoologists pay attention to the metabolic properties of diluted goblin venom in dietary functions along with the details on how it actually isn’t venom at all. Rather it is wildly enforced with strong and fast acting enzymes built upon degrading particular gemstones and transitioning the minerals into metabolic assisting catalysts.” It was incredibly relieving to hear these words mentioned by his hero.

“I-I’m not going to cry.” he could feel a shudder rippling up along his spine as he started to wipe away potential tears.

“Well Mr. Greenwood.” he said calmly as he passed the notebook back to him, “you have a keen mind for details and a wonderful interest in mystical creatures and fantastic beasts.”

“Oh, my goodness yes I actually have a first edition copy of that my mother gave it to me for my eleventh birthday. I could not help but read it cover to cover repeatedly on my way to school. I had so many questions though about further details I had to ask as many questions possible. So, I saw Hagrid. I am particularly fond of Hagrid he is interested in creatures too. Did you know that he had a Cerberus? A Cerberus! I mean do not get me wrong I love Gustave he is an amazing kneazle, but a three-headed dog that is amazing! Did you know muggles usually get kneazles confused with ligers? Do you know they drool eighteen barrels of slobber each day? Y-you probably did know that, but did you know that some people use that in Hollywood for slime? I do not find it particularly pleasant in terms of ethics, but I guess that sort of thing happens in Hollywood. I’m terribly sorry I tend to do this sometimes when I get overexcited on a particular topic.”

It was good to have some light-hearted laughter rather than the mocking laughter he would receive by some of the kids from Slytherin, Ravenclaw, and Gryffindor. Although, some of the kids in Ravenclaw did not mind too much because that saved them from reading multitudes of books. It was kind of an unwanted curse and blessing seeing that he could gather loads of information and vomit it out whenever the circumstance was relevant. There were times he would use his stored away facts to break the ice in to meet new people, but it had backfired like it had when he was in primary school. It was relieving to have Newt of all people giving him warm and hearty laughter.

“I have to admit you have a good understanding of mystical creatures” Scamander smiled warmly, “but you have so much to learn about them. The way they celebrate their holidays, social and political dynamics, cultural and circumstantial differences, and so much more. Even then there are a ton of things anatomically you need and should learn, you might even be able to learn more about them then I will one day.”

It was incredible to hear that from his hero. There just were not enough words to fully describe his delight. His palms were incredibly sweaty now and Jeffrey was just relieved to have his book in his shoulder bag and embarrassingly wiped them on his sweater. His sweater was black and green striped. He knew and his mother knew that it was not representative of his house, him being a Hufflepuff like his hero, but the colours just were not suitable for him. He was not comfortable in yellow and grey or yellow and black. Jeffrey could not help but alternate shoulder shrugs as he fought against the tag that he cut from his sweater. Even then he wore any other houses colours best given his thin and pale complexion. Even then it did not help with his shaggy curly brown hair and hazel eyes. Jeffrey was not sure about what it was, but he had no sense of style as mentioned by several of the students at Hogwarts when not attending class. He thought it was fine but then again, he just dressed in what he found comfortable at that time. And that was one of the things he liked about Scamander too he did not really care about what other people thought he looked like though what he wore seemed stylish to say the least. Even in a dark blue robe that was covered in dust and mud he wore it with terrible confidence.

“Make sure you take care of magical creatures in your third year that will provide you with plenty of wonderful information.” He smiled down at Jeffrey as he gestured for them to turn back to the crowded building, “You’ll be able to talk to Hagrid more easily about creatures. Just make sure you give me detailed letters of your studies in that field I’m getting too old to investigate as much as I’d like to anymore.”

“Oh, sure I’d be more than happy to do that for your Sir-”

“I thought I told you to call me Newt” as he teasingly arched an eyebrow.

“Sorry Newt I just got carried away-”

“It’s fine Jeffrey” he could not help but chuckle at the kids’ expense, “is everything going well for you financially?”

“Y-yes Newt my mother has savings set aside to provide for the second year” he could not help but shuffle his feet along the cobblestone as they got close to the door, “Instead of using the portkey can I get apparated back home? It just feels weirder traveling through portkey. As a matter of fact, even house elves prefer apparition more compared to travel via portkey. Then again we can’t do what they call popping.”

“Concerned that you are just vomiting information in an attempt to try and impress me?” he could not help but chuckle as Jeffrey looked towards his feet and nodded, “that’s alright Jeffrey even though I am aware of popping I do appreciate you took the time to learn that. The real question is where did you learn that?”

“I talk to some of the house elves in Hogwarts” he continued to shuffle his feet uncomfortably while occasionally alternating shoulder shrugs, “They make better friends than most of the students at Hogwarts they are some of the few people that Gustave doesn’t hiss at.”

“Y-you call them people?” it was interesting to hear Newt choke up slightly as he brought the back of his hand to his face, “I-I feel terrible that I have wasted your summer doing an internship here rummaging through books rather than being out and about with them. I think you deserve compensation.”

“I don’t think that would be necessary-”

“Oh, nonsense it is the least I can do since I have bored you enough this summer.” As he offered his arm to Jeffrey, “I’ll make sure to send it by owl although it may take a while for it to reach you.”

And with that Jeffrey took his arm as space warped and bent about them as they snapped out of place only to crack back into another open location. The two had enjoyed the time spent in that little cottage out in the middle of nowhere. Now they stood in a haphazard lawn the two of them knew was littered with brownies despite the well-dressed lawns the neighbours had. Even though it was not what Jeffrey thought an internship with Scamander would be like he was still appreciative of the time he had spent there. There was information to gather but it was easier to grasp in the manner that Newt described. Going out there and gathering the information first-hand. As they stood in the yard Gustave was there to greet them. Jeffrey loved it when Newt made the exceedingly rare visit because he loved how much of a fuss he had make over the creatures in his yard. On his first visit he gifted Jeffrey with Gustave. At that time Gustave was smaller than your average kitten of six weeks. His little brown coat and fuzzy tail were adorable only to further melt Jeffrey’s heart when he first opened his eyes. They were a deep emerald green which was one of Jeffrey’s more favourable shades of green. Newt had given him as a gift knowing he had interests in the creatures mentioned in his book “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”. Had it not been for the multitude of letters Miriam had sent on Jeffrey’s behalf, him having written a total of four hundred and twenty seven letters over the course of two years Newt would not have known how good of a fit Jeffrey would have been for Gustave.

It was a day the two of them had hoped to retain for many years to come if not for a lifetime. Newt could not help but beam with excitement when he first introduced himself to Jeffrey and shortly after introducing Gustave. He had given him extremely specific instructions regarding the kneazle and its’ diet and exercise demands. There was not much of a choice in the matter. Even in his long line of experience a dwarf kneazle was a rather rare find at that for most were known to fall prey to predators due to their smaller stature and shorter legs. So, Newt found it only fair to give Jeffrey a trial run and check up on the results in a month. He was impressed to have found the little boy carrying Gustave in his arms tentatively as he waited just on the outskirts of the lawn. The little kneazle was wrapped up in a towel as he shuffled his way out of the doorstep. Jeffrey then started to explain how Gustave was doing fine until he hit the halfway point at which he then fell ill. Jeffrey then went into painful detail of the care he gave the little kneazle occasionally checking inside the towel as it purred back at him gently only to then have him stare down at his shoes. Newt could feel his heart strings being plucked as the little boy was terribly hesitant in handing Gustove back. He could easily see tears welling up in the little boy’s eyes as Newt took the kneazle into his arms and moved away the towel to get a good look at him. Jeffrey was relieved with the gentle expression on Mr. Scamander’s face. Gustave seemed great. Better than that even. His eyes were bright and glossy, his coat was well brushed and silky, nails were clipped and filed, his teeth were filling out well with no signs of major over or under bite, and the lion like tail was well groomed and swayed easily.

It was wonderful watching that relationship between those two grow as he attended his first year at Hogwarts. The two had kept in contact over the mail, but Jeffrey knew that not all his letters would be responded to due to Newt’s busy life taking care of and handling his fantastic beasts. Newt knelt and scratched behind Gustave’s ear for a moment before doing a routine check up like he had a year ago. All things seemed to be in working order if not better.

“My we seem to be cut from a similar cloth.” as he looked at Gustave then at Jeffrey, “You’ve taken great care of Gustave since I last saw him and he more than shows it.” as he pointed at his purring friend.

“I’m glad you think so.” Jeffrey seemed to have lit up at the compliment, “I make sure he has tuna because the oil does wonders for the hair, but not too much because then he starts to get sick. Then I make him a special mix of milk and ginger. I know it sounds weird and yes it tastes worse than it sounds which says something, but Gustave seems to like it and it settles his stomach when he’s having a bad day. And- oh yeah there I go again.” As he let his voice trail off again while Newt let out another hearty laugh.

“Well once again I’m glad. You worked hard to keep him safe and well and that shows.” As Newt stood up and grabbed his briefcase again, “You might have what it takes to become a great magizoologist. I look forward to hearing about your progress from you and from Dumbledore.”

“I’ll make sure to give you a monthly summary this time and make them a bit shorter too!”

“Sounds good Mr. Greenwood, now come over here.” As they gave each other a hug, “Take care during your second year and remember all creatures have a story to them and not all are as terrible as they appear.”

With that Newt picked up his briefcase and with a sharp snapping sound he had disappeared through thin air. Leaving Jeffrey and Gustave standing at the edge of their driveway and lawn looking out into the inky black street as the faint glistening of starlight provided little comfort and light. Jeffrey could not help but scratch behind Gustave’s ears and smile from ear to ear. This year was going to be different. This year will be fantastic.


	2. A New Day

“My goodness Mr. Greenwood I know you had a rough first year, but during the sorting feast now that has to be a record.” Madam Pomfrey was talking more to herself at this point rather than the boy whose kneazle decided to lazily sit on his chest and brush his tail against his nose making him giggle and hurt at the same time.

“I’m sorry Madam Pomfrey.” as he shifted Gustave to make himself a bit more comfortable to which the kneazle was semi compliant with as he fell asleep, “I just can’t believe how heated a conversation about pixies, nixies, and sprites can get.”

“Oh, poor child I’m sure that wasn’t the case as to why those kids beat you.” As she fiddled with a couple of bottles finally finding the right one which when she popped the cork off smelled like pickled seaweed, “Now you’re going to want to plug your nose for this.” As she offered him a small glass to take it with.

Jeffrey did not mind this all too much. Compared to the kids he grew up with in school before coming to Hogwarts this was an easy break from the bullying he had when he was younger. Sure, he had a black eye and a fat lip and several bruises along his back but that was really the worst of it. He could not help but laugh to himself as he remembered how long it took for the bruising to start let alone for him to obtain the black eye. It was roughly a good twenty minutes in and that was because it took a bit longer for the professors to reach them. Although he did find it strange nobody used magic the entire time not even to separate them. Jeffrey knew better than to fight back though. It was something he and his father were very unhappy about. Mainly whenever he decided to fight back things escalated rather quickly, that and it was like the rest of the world just seemed to melt away save where his fists were landing. Regardless, he did not want to leave Hogwarts let alone get separated from Gustave. If anything, that little kneazle was his best friend.

Jeffrey had wished he were paying attention to the matter at hand though when he poured the medicine into this mouth. It was bitter like there were actual chunks of seaweed inside that seemed to have expired while a strong salty kick landed in the back of his throat. He coughed several times as he tried to swallow it down, but it was like trying to swallow seafoam. Eventually he understood the real unpleasantry about the medication it bubbled and fizzed through certain membranes. Madam Pomfrey was already there with a bucket for catching all sorts of deposits that were in and around his wounds. It was sort of fun feeling the bubbly sensation reach towards his eye only to have it pop as all the blood from the shiner kicked the back of his throat coated in the savoury liquid. Gustave leapt from his chest just in time to avoid the entire wretch fest and now transitioned to his friend’s feet lightly purring before contentedly falling back to sleep while Madam Pomfrey applied a few bandages.

“Hey Jeffrey, I can’t believe that happened.”

“Yeah that was awful of them to do that.”  
“Are you doing alright?”

As two member of his house and one from Ravenclaw filed in. The two from Hufflepuff were Gregory and Sean both of which were fourth years. Gregory was terribly larger than Sean both in height and overall mass like he was raised on a farm and held back from Hogwarts several years. He loomed over him even as he stood at the foot of the bed. Gregory must have been at least six feet tall with dark hair and brown eyes although he was pale as a ghost that only made him seem more intimidating. Like Frankenstein’s monster but with a wand. Sean was different in every way. For starters he was roughly five and a half feet tall at best. What seemed weird was he was known for being a lady’s man at least with other Hufflepuffs it seemed. He had that straight sandy blonde hair and deep blue eyes that Jeffrey found alarming, but girls found arguably attractive in their own strange way. Despite looking good and having a certain bit of charm there was nothing there to him. It was like looking at a fancy pillowcase. It looked good but there was no substance to it. Then there was Malory. And to be honest this caused all the warning bells to fire off all at once. Mainly because she was his crush from first year. She was still the prettiest girl he had met and could feel his palms get sweaty again as she sat on the right-hand side of him and placed a hand on his arm. Malory was just a bit taller than him but in Jeffrey’s defence he still thought he had a growth spurt to hit. He could feel his heart racing quickly as she pushed some of her sandy blonde hair behind her ear. His eyes were wide like a brownie staring down a biscuit. He shuffled uncomfortably as she gave him a slight smile while he was simply enchanted by her light blue eyes. Jeffrey snapped out of it quickly though as he heard the two snickering very briefly before Gustave was up and alert hissing at them both.

“Jeffrey-” Madam Pomfrey started.

“Madam Pomfrey can you tell Sean and Gregory to please vacate the area?” he seemed to have mentioned completely unphased until he found himself needing to wretch into the bucket again. Both a sight and sound that caused Malory to cover her mouth and turn her face away in understandable disgust.

“You heard him boys off you go.” As she started to shoo them away prattling on about his health and well being in a time of recovery.

“Thanks Madam Pomfrey.” He replied once he was able to get under control again.

“Maybe I should head out too?” as Malory started to get up which made Jeffrey panic.

“No please don’t” he went to catch her hand in his but quickly realized she’d just slip out with as much ease as if he had never attempted anyway, “I hope I wasn’t rude. You see a kneazle has the ability to detect untrustworthy people and I trained him to let me know which people I could and couldn’t trust.” He could not help but get a little red in the face as she smiled lightly and took a seat again, “Unless me puking was absolutely terrible and if that is the case I fully understand I think I got over it too.”

Until the bitter and painful truth hit him again as he spewed into the bucket. He did not want to pull his head out due to the sheer amount of embarrassment that had now flooded his system. Jeffrey waved his hand hoping she got the hint that he was apologetically dismissing her. There was little comfort gained and lost at the same time as she got out of her seat and made her way across the wing. Each step made his heart pound with agony knowing he had fully blown all his chances with her even from a friendly standpoint. He was just hoping that at some point those steps would get a bit closer and that his stomach would finally behave. Then just like that all the footsteps stopped in their tracks. He peered over the bucked hoping he could see what was happening without making any eye contact. Nope. Instead he looked her right in the eyes and thanked Merlin there was a bucket to hide his embarrassment with as she stood there at the door with her hands behind her back.

“I-I hope you get well soon!” and with that she walked out of the wing. Although she tried to make herself seem calm and collect the echoing of her shoes down the hall suggested otherwise.

Whatever that otherwise was Jeffrey had no clue nor the will at that point to find out. For the time being he was content at just having his head in the bucket to hide his embarrassment. It was one of the few times he had been able to talk to her and what did his mind go to. Magizoology of kneazle behaviour. Something that if tonight had been any proof of caused people not to like him. Now as for the reason why him talking about creatures was such a terrible thing he did not know. Maybe it was in the manner he had spoken. He could not put his finger on it to save his life. He guessed it was probably just one of those topics students only wanted to talk about if they were genuinely interested in the topic. And from what he could gather nobody was interested in the topic. Some would laugh, others would mock, some would just curl their lips in disgust. This made him wonder if care of mystical creatures was that bad of a course. Jeffrey could not help but let out a laugh in the bucket realising what he had just thought. Care of mystical creatures could in no way shape or form be boring it had three of the best things, open areas, Hagrid, and best of all mystical creatures.

“My that was interesting.” As Madam Pomfrey insisted that the potion had taken its fully affect and was now trying to pull away the bucket, “I can mend and cure a lot of things but a broken heart from a crush I cannot.” She could not help but give him a teasing raise of her eyebrow, “So you just be careful no alright?”

“Ugh, Madam Pomfrey-”

“Oh, I know, I know it’s not my place.” As she flicked her wand and cleaned the bucket out, “But Merlin be damned don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“Warn me about what?” Jeffrey was having a hard time putting the pieces together. It was nothing of terrible surprise to him. There was always something about these situations that he did not excel in.

“I can’t help but laugh” and it was true, she laughed good and hard, “most of the time I hate the drama that comes flying into this wing, but my you really are something aren’t you?”

“Madam I am so confused-”

“How? Honestly now, how?” her jovial expression had now returned to being a rather stern one like someone had pulled his bandages off his face immediately after she applied them, “How is it you have oceans worth of knowledge for all sorts of beasts, creatures, and things but when it comes a girl you like you’re like a stranded fish on the beach?”

“Girls are not the same.” Jeffrey muttered as he fell back on to the pillows, “they have no patterns, ritualistic behaviours, or unspoken signs of how they are feeling, and most importantly no specialist I can talk to about them.”

“Oh, you silly boy.” Madam Pomfrey was now trying her hardest to stifle her laughter but all together was doing a terrible job at it, “You are right about the last part as for the others you clearly just don’t know what to look for.”

“And you would be able to help me with that?”

“Oh, heavens no child that would be terribly rude” as she tried to hold back a chuckle, “never mind that would leave me with nothing laugh about when you come by.”

“So, you find my plight funny? I have to admit that seems a little hurtful.”

“Oh, no not at all.” She dismissed it with an easy wave of her hand, “I just love watching you grow and develop. I am serious now you are my favourite patient and that is not just because you are the most talkative one, I get each year. I just find it funny you understand more about the creatures around you than you do the people around you.”

“What do you mean I get along with the goblins at Gringotts and the house elves here just fine.”

“And that’s my point.” As she stood by the bed and picked up Gustave to place him within petting reach, “You do better with creatures than with people. Now off to bed you can sleep in your dorm tomorrow the swelling may have gone down, and the blood cleared up, but you need rest.”

And just like that Jeffrey was left alone with Gustave. It was not the worst thing in his opinion. The only thing that kept him awake was the thought of goblins and house elves not being considered as people. To him they were just as much of people as the people he went to class with. Yet there was something that made them different he just was not sure exactly what that was. Like the wizards and witches here they cast magic. Or well that was an arguable point for him personally. Witches and wizards cast spells, used magic. Creatures and people like them. They just live with it. There is no distinction to them when they do something considered mundane or magical to them it is all the same thing. Jeffrey was glad to get a hold of the back of Gustave’s ear as he scratched behind it as the little kneazle purred louder and made his way up to his chest kneading the blanked for several minutes before lazily falling asleep on his comrades chest. Jeffrey could not help but smile. Even Gustave just lived with magic in the sense of where it was all one and the same with his entity no distinction all just one ebb and flow. He was grateful to have a friend like him around. Other than the temp job he did with Newt at the “Bureau of Mystical Beasts” Gustave was the only thing other than his mother’s cooking he enjoyed about the day. Sure, he loved his parents but there seemed to be a sort of disconnect with them even though his father and him started to talk more. It was almost like there was not enough magic in their own home. Sure, Miriam was a witch but that was almost like that calling himself Mr. Greenwood it was more of a title than an actual sense of identity. And that was not really the case. There were times when his mother would perform magic. It was just extraordinarily little and extremely far between unless it was to cover up for some of his mistakes while he was growing up.

Unlike here. At Hogwarts it was like the castle itself was a living breathing entity. Although he knew that it was a large list of enchantments, charms, and other forms of magic it was almost like living inside another large living magical entity. It was difficult for him to explain in ways that made sense but to him it made all the sense in the world. Then again, he did not need it to make sense to anyone else. Once again it would be one of those things that only he would, or better yet could, understand. And that was okay. If anything, that just meant that there was more magic in this world for him to explore and for him alone to understand. He could not help but chuckle as the purrs filled the wing and hairs from the lionlike tail tickled his nose in short bursts. Sure, today was not the best in starting off what should be a fantastic year at Hogwarts, but that was the most comforting thing there were still plenty of days yet to make it something wonderful. Now all he had to do was fall asleep.

Something that should be incredibly easy for him to do. Other than eating, potions, herbology, and talking with “creatures” and beasts it was his favourite thing to do. Yet his mind was flooded with conflicting emotions and memories of the events of the day. Like sharing treats with Gustave on the train ride over. It was not the most ideal circumstance to most other kids but for him it was great. Anytime there was someone that Gustave did not trust he scared them away or irritated them into leaving. So, it gave them a whole compartment to themselves. Then there was the sorting ceremony. He found it funny how the Sorting Hat would figure out where to place people. It really showed you could not judge a person by the looks of them or the way they acted. Jeffrey had a wonderful time when he was getting sorted. The hat however, well it did not have as much fun. It took him several minutes to put him into a house but that was because it was trying to wade through the absolute sea of questions the young wizard had concerning the hat. Jeffrey later learned that you needed to try and keep your mind as clear as could be so you could get sorted easily and that would have explained a few things. Like when he made his way to Dumbledore’s office to have him forward a letter to Newt, Gustave did not trust the owl so neither did Jeffrey, he found that the headmaster was not there, but the hat was. Jeffrey never understood how much a hat would wish it had legs until this one told him. It gave him a good lecture about its purpose here at Hogwarts how it is to determine the character to help assist and place the individual into a place where their learning could expand and be concentrated into something productive. So, Jeffrey decided to take notes on the hats function and to his surprise the hat was rather pleased that it could just speak and go uninterrupted. Well. Until it stopped talking. Then Jeffrey started asking questions. It took some time for him to realise it, but the hat only wanted to talk when it decided to and only for specific periods of time. So, Jeffrey made a point of seeing it three times a week each week for the first year at Hogwarts.

The only problem with that is that Jeffrey needed a good excuse to visit the headmaster each time he wanted to talk with the hat. Sometimes it would be a fib that he needed to report the Weasley twins. Other times it was “searching” for Gustave even though he let him sleep in the dorm. One time he snuck in because a troll was loose in the castle. Another time it was to complain about this one kid named Ron. He did not know why but for some reason he just got a glimpse of him and decided he did not like that ginger. Like if you could trip anyone down a flight of stairs, he would be candidate number one. All the other times it was forwarding letters to Newt. Which eventually led to the kind and brief letter on how he should stop sending so many letters in such a brief time and save them for incredibly large occasions. Jeffrey felt a little guilty having sent fourteen letters on the colouration of Gustave’s hairballs over two months, but he needed an excuse to talk with the hat. It was not until the end of the school year that he found out he could really get under the hat’s metaphorical skin by putting him on and annoying him to the point of answering his questions. That was a rather insightful day for Jeffrey but it was probably all wasted on questions about how it functioned even further, whether it maintained memory of each person who wore it, whether it held their memories as well as its own, how it was created, if it was created, what materials were used, how its care had been since first existing, and all sorts of exhausting questions. So many to the point of where it stopped answering questions altogether and just screamed until Dumbledore or someone else would come running into the office. Jeffrey thought he could outsmart it by wearing his noise cancelling headphones but then he realised he could not hear him speak when he gave in either, so it was all just a wasted effort.

Jeffrey’s mind went back to this year’s sorting ceremony however because that meant new students. Those from his class and those in the other years were not particularly fond of him to say the least. Well the girls liked him fine. It was mainly the boys. Probably because the girls knew they could talk to him about anything and he would not be a total guy about it with rude comments, although some did spill out on occasion, and because he would listen. He was quiet and would listen so that gave the impression that he was a nice guy. In all actuality he was just too shy and awkward to try and talk to anybody else. That and when in a room he would rather just be a wall flower that sat back and observed rather than talking. So, there were times where it would take a bit longer for him to open to somebody else and start talking with them. The only real friend he had in Hufflepuff was Patty. There were only two major problems with her though. The biggest issue was that she was allergic to cats and cat related creatures so that meant Gustave could not be in the same room. The second issue was she cared too much about setting Jeffrey up with somebody. It was like she lived and breathed drama for the sake of it. The worse part was when she would talk him in to talking with a girl. Jeffrey thought she had read one too many vampire romance novels but went on with it for her sake anyway. It was always embarrassing talking to a new girl especially since he was still within earshot while they talked about him after the encounter. He would always hear things like, “he’s cute” and “what did he want to say to you” and those were fine it actually gave him a little confidence boost until he heard the other girls’ reaction, “I don’t know he wanted to talk about how nifflers are sometimes mistaken for a thing called a platypus” and then they would laugh about it and that was where he drew the line and went back to his food. Yet that did not stop Patty from trying to help and set him up with someone.

It was not all bad really. Sometimes she would just sit with him and talk about some of the girls from other houses and years. It was Patty that got him to meet Malory. The encounter would have gone a bit better though if someone had not switched out Gustave’s shampoo and made him look like a one-eyed one-horned flying purple people eater. He was sure that it was a solvent rendition of a Polyjuice potion mixed with various other creatures to give it the desired outcome for his tormentor’s pleasure. However, the encounter turned out fine in the end. It was Malory that introduced him to Hagrid and after some fifth years cornered him in the forbidden woods it was Malory that introduced him to Madam Pomfrey. He was not sure if that was just her being nice or if she did fancy him. He tried not to think about it too much though. She was from a house or something of that affect to where she had an air of importance to her. Either that or she just had a lot of pride and respect for herself he really could not tell. If she was anything like the other girls that he knew she had more than a couple of potential suitors and even more boys she fancied. So rather than becoming super infatuated with one girl he kept his options open, which was the biggest lie it seemed he would ever tell himself and talk with Patty about the new girls that started their first year.

Some girls were pretty, some were gorgeous, and others were simply different. Like that Luna girl. Sure, she was pretty, but something just did not seem right and that was enough for him to direct his attentions elsewhere. Ginny seemed like a cute girl and Patty also agreed. Until we found out that she was closely related to Ron then that killed the dream. Jeffrey liked redheads and brunettes but if anything, the sorting hat had taught him it was to look past that. It made him think that maybe Patty would have been a more ideal crush or potential girlfriend for that matter. She had a similar build like Malory which was a combination of cute with a little chub. All that meant to Jeffrey was that they ate well and did not care about what people thought about them. That was something he could respect since it seemed some houses cared more about maintaining appearances more than anything else. Like the entire house of Slytherin. It was confusing how they all behaved. Almost like a literal nest of snakes. Twisting and writhing about in their den trying to reach the top at what seemed to be at whatever cost.

In short it was not the kind of lifestyle for him. Jeffrey wanted something simple yet pleasingly complex and challenging without being overbearing. Something that would seem to be a hard balance to find. Then again it was just simply that. A hope. A dream. And nothing more than that. Sure, there were times he wished he had more exciting things going on. Like giving gifts during Christmas or exchanging chocolates during Valentine’s day. However, there was nobody that came to mind other than Patty and Malory. Well and Newt…and Hargrid, but they were not girls and most certainly not girls at Hogwarts. Even though he did receive a letter from Newt on Christmas day and a box of treats for Gustave on Valentine’s day. Jeffrey could not help but chuckle when he thought about Valentine’s day. He might as well change it to pamper your pet day because that is all he did outside of classes. Even Hagrid made a brush for Gustave’s fur and a kneazle friendly cake for his birthday. Jeffrey just laid back into the pillows more as he thought of what this year would have in store for him. Maybe Yule with the brownies in the backyard, maybe have a guy’s day with Gustave in Diagon Ally for Valentine’s day, or even celebrate spring festival with the Leprechaun’s in the forbidden woods provided he can talk Hagrid into it. Within minutes of such thoughts and the exhaustion of the events from the sorting ceremony he drifted off to sleep while Gustave decided to be a menace and run around the wing bumping into beds and occasionally knocking over a beaker or two.


	3. Part Man, Part Wizard, Whole lot of Problems

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everybody due to personal matters this fic will be updated every Saturday. With that I will try and make the chapters longer to compensate for the lack of posting. Either way I hope you enjoy this chapter :)

“You did what?” as Amy Levitt sat across the table from Malory eyes wide as she nibbled on a breakfast scone. It was officially the first day was now introduced with little bits of drama, “You ran out of the hospital wing?”

“I know it is silly” Malory Gibbins could not help but blush and bite her lip as she looked down at her slice of ham.

“Oh, come on I think it is cute.” As Amy decided to put the cutlery aside and push away her plate briefly taking a break from eating to focus on her friends’ face, “You know he’s looking at you right?”

“No, he’s not!” she even looked up sheepishly as she moved her hair behind her ear again looking over her shoulder to the Hufflepuff table.

She could not help but bite her lip and play with her hair as she looked over. Surprisingly and satisfyingly there was Jeffrey. He was not hot like Cedric, but he had his own overly cuteness about him. She could not tell if it was his quiet nature or his quirky behaviour regarding his pet. Her heart sank a little as she realised that Jeffrey was in fact not looking at him at all but instead was feeding small portions of ham to his kneazle. It was rare when he was not with his pet. Or well his friend. She knew he preferred Gustave to be called that. Although there was little to nothing in terms of his day to day life, she knew almost everything about it. It was terribly cute to watch him play with his friend during breakfast. It was one of the many things she looked forward to every morning. Then her most favourite thing happened. Suddenly. Every day. Like clockwork. He looked up at her and smiled. Malory could not help but bite her lip and turn back to her friend quickly.

“See I told you!” Amy almost jumped out of her seat eagerly drumming along the table reaching for Malory’s hands, “See he is totally into you!”

“Oh, come on you and I both know that he does this every morning.” As she looked down at her plate as she teased her hair in her finger, “I will admit I do find it rather adorable.”

“Well of course you find it adorable.” She tried not to giggle about it, “you have a crush on him. And you know that I know he has a crush on you right?”

“I know, I know you told me many times last year.” As she continued to bite her lip while she cut her ham and quickly gobbled down small bites of ham, “How did you bump into him that many times last year?”

“Well you know me I’m here to help.” She smiled as she could not help but shudder with excitement, “I may have stalked him briefly for you. You would be surprised how many times I found him making his way towards the headmaster’s office. He does write a lot of letters. Do you think he has a pen pal? Do you think it is a girl?”

“Oh, stop now you’re just teasing me to get under my skin.” As she put down the cutlery and stared at her friend, “As for the letter’s I have no clue who he is writing.” Pulling up her cutlery again to get yet another mouthful of ham, “Besides what do you think he was doing in Dumbledore’s office all those times?”

“Oh, that! He would pop in to talk with the sorting hat!” She could not help but laugh about that.

“No! Really? That sounds a little strange doesn’t it?” as she looked over her shoulder again trying to resist the urge to smile as she watched him brush Gustave while some of the girls from his house sat around and talked with him.

She knew none of them were a potential threat in terms of catching his interest. Malory made it her secondary purpose last year to make sure nobody would try and have him wrapped around their finger. Sure, she had a major crush on him, but she could not let that get in the way of her studies. It took the whole year for her to realise she did not have to go through all that effort anyway. One girl tried to send him a new pair of earmuffs for herbology since the mandrake was still a bit too loud with the earmuffs each of them were given in class. The girl made sure to have them enchanted so no noise could get through. However, she had them delivered to his dorm and Gustave must have gotten to them ahead of time. Another girl tried to give him chocolates during Valentine’s day, but it did not turn out as she planned. This girl tried to leave chocolate in an obvious spot for him during potions. Only he gave them to Goyle because he was complaining about not having enough to eat that morning and kept pestering him about it. Some other girls tried to make a cake for him when his birthday came around, but he did not even leave his dorm that day. In other words, the guy was just misfortunate enough to miss any other girls’ advances on him keeping her crush on him well intact.

“Malory stop playing with your hair!” her thoughts were pulled back to her friend slapping her hand along the top of the table urgently, “Badger on the prowl! Badger on the prowl!”

“What?” she arched an eyebrow completely confused as to what her friend meant while she had half a scone sitting in her mouth.

“Oh, s-sorry I hope I am not interrupting something.” Jeffrey paused as he looked at the two girls with his Kneazle in his arms, “If you like I can find you another time when you aren’t eating.”

“Oh, no! No! Sit, please! Rodger move Malory needs some space for her friend!” it was both relieving and embarrassing at how badly Amy was invested in this to become a relationship.

“You sure I’m not bothering you at all?” he was the one now to arch an eyebrow, “Even at my own table I get told that I bother them sometimes.”

“No! No. No. No. No. No!” Amy repeated quickly trying not to smile too much as to give him any ideas as to what she was planning, “come on sit.” She invited him, to which he gracefully accepted although there was a little colour coming into his own cheeks along with Malory, “You know she doesn’t bite. You can scoot closer to her if you want to.”

Amy! What on earth was she thinking? And better yet why did she have to say it that way? There was not enough time to process this while her friend smiled to herself. They were going to have an exceptionally long talk when they got back to the dorms at the end of today mark her words. However, she was pulled away from her thoughts of frustration towards her friend as Jeffrey took the vacant space next to her without a moment’s hesitation upon invitation. She could feel the heat rush to her cheeks as she pulled her hand up to her face propping her elbow on the table trying to hide her embarrassment. Only to then feel himself pressed up against her arm as they bumped elbows as he scooted in closer. If looks could kill Amy would have been a pile of ashes. She tried to breathe deeply as she tried to gain control of her senses. Sure, she had been close to him before, but most of those times were escorting him to Hagrid’s or to the hospital wing. Save last night. Last night was the closest she had ever been to him before. Well until now. However, the feelings that were associated with that level of proximity were all the same. The backs of her hands had a slight itch to them, she could not help but smile in a way she thought probably made her look silly, so she would bite her lip to try and hide it. This was not the best way to approach the situation. It would have been better if she could get the nerve to say something to him. Amy was talking his ear off from the looks of it, but then again listening was something that she had always liked about him. There were a couple of times when they say him listening on Snape giving a lecture on why the direction and speed of stirring your cauldron was important. Just the way he conducted himself while studying was something incredibly cute to watch. What was best was when he would become perplexed.

“So how were your marks from last year?” Amy prodded to keep the conversation going.

“I got in the top thirty which I was told was pretty good for a mudblood.” He said nonchalantly while fussing his kneazle.

“Sorry, what?” as the two girls spoke almost in tandem whilst exchanging looks to one another.

“Yeah a mudblood it’s when you have someone like me who has both a muggle and non-muggle parents and the ability to use magic it-” he started to explain rather clinically before getting cut off by Amy.

“We know what that means!” As Amy was trying to distract the look of disgust on her face with a drink, “But why on earth are you referring to yourself as such?”

“Referring to myself as what? A mudblood?”

“Yes!” they both said again with similar looks of horror and disbelief, “Where did you pick that up anyway?” it was now time for Malory to pick up the conversation.

“Oh.” As he put some thought as to where he first heard the phrase, “Goyle called told me about it last year during Valentine’s day. Yeah, his exact words were: Ah thanks, you’re not so bad for a mudblood.” As he sat that looking up as if there were a thought bubble above his head, “He then explained it but that didn’t mean much to me I thought it was just the way people like me addressed each other.”

“You have got to be kidding me.” Malory was seriously starting to wonder why she had a crush on him in the first place. One moment he would be incredibly sweet and adorable to stupid and adorable in a really weird way, “You know mudblood is a negative term, right? It’s like calling someone a bitch.”

“Oh.” As Jeffrey’s eyes started to widen at the oncoming realisation, “Well that explains a lot.” Malory was trying her hardest not to have a crush for him again as he went into his silly and incredibly cute perplexed look. It was like the thinker pose, but thankfully while fully robed.

“Don’t tell me you’ve been calling other classmates mudbloods.” The concern in her voice reaching a peak.

“Um. Yeah. Yeah I did.” He was completely unphased by the realisation, that or he was just terribly oblivious, “Yeah muggleborn and mudblood were interchangeable I thought.”

“What!” the two of them exclaimed panicked by what they had heard.

“You have got to be kidding me.” Amy was both angry and lost in hysterics over this, “You know I’m muggleborn right?”

“Oh, did I call you a mudblood before? I’m terribly sorry about that-” his kneazle jumped off his lap now searching for any food that would have dropped on the floor while Jeffrey fidgeted with his hands, “I-it explains a lot of the “bullying” or well beatings I received last year. I guess I was the bully in that series of situations. I-I should get going.” As he bumped the table, knocked over a plate, and stepped on his kneazle’s tail.

Some of the kids that saw this happen snickered and laughed to themselves as they watched him fumble around with his surroundings. His face went bright red. He would try going one direction. Stop. Then proceed to go another direction. It was like he was lost or confused. It was difficult to determine which one it was if not a combination of the two. Then his arms started to shake as he paced. Almost like someone put ants into his robe he fidgeted and danced his way out of it until he threw his robe on the floor and ran out of the dining hall. There was a very moment of silence followed by laughter and gossip all around the events that took place. Save whatever it was that happened around Slytherin’s table. They all seemed to be too deeply invested in their own world to care. After a couple of minutes everything regarding what happened with Jeffrey had died completely and everyone started talking about various other topics.

“Well that was awkward.” Amy tried to open another conversation as she pulled her plate back and poked the food around her plate.

“I’ll say.” Her voice trailed off as she watched the kneazle drag a whole piece of ham to where his friend had sat, show and expression of confusion as it looked about the dining hall, drop the piece of ham and whine as it sniffed the robe on the floor only to put himself in the centre of the bundle and curl up, “Should we go check on him?”

“Are you serious?” as Amy put her face in her hands and let out a long breath before looking back up at her friend, “He just had a total episode and instead of being disgusted with him or even embarrassed you want to help him?”

“Well. Maybe? No?” she did not know what to think at this point in time. It would seem rather odd for her to get up and leave to go and comfort a second-year student. Especially after the lengthy courting that had absorbed her entire summer. Even then she was sure that seeing him in the hospital wing last night was probably enough at that time to spread rumours and smudge her reputation a little.

Even though she was a pureblood it just did not seem right. She had taken a step back before and viewed the setup of pureblood behaviour, etiquette, and the like and while some of it was wonderful like receiving special gifts around the holidays it certainly had its pitfalls. The past two summers were good enough evidence of that. Her mother had taken the liberty taking her out to public places, operas, balls, banquettes, and other extremely public places while she wore an exquisitely crafted butterfly hair pin made of sapphires and intricately goblin forged silver. Shortly after she had received a plethora of invitations had arrived. Most of the invitations were contained in parcels that varied from robes, capes, scarfs, gloves, dresses, and two necklaces. It turned out that the necklaces were sent by muggleborns trying to pass of as purebloods. Her mother was very unimpressed with that but sent her out on dates with each of them anyway with mandatory terms she had set for her. Malory was not to wear the necklaces, hold hands, or have a goodnight kiss from either of them. She did have to wear whatever items from the other suitors that would complement the occasion and outfit she wore for the event and they all had to be in public places. The two boys had become so embarrassed that they never bothered in attempting that again. Her entire third year was going to events with all the other boys in similarly public areas wearing the gifts they brought her. Even though some of them were charming while others were not, she did not really see herself clicking with any of them. Then again it was not meant for her to find compatibility with them on a personality front. It was solely set up to represent the houses and keep up their social and magipolitical status.

The worse part was. She really connected with the muggleborns. That was probably why she has a crush on one. Or well. Had? She did not know what to think. It was strange he did not understand some of the language used in the wizarding world. Then again how could he know any better he was a muggleborn. But even then, that statement made no sense because there was a large amount of muggleborns that understood what a mudblood was. It was a very frowned upon term to use but that did not stop many of the blood purists from using it. Even then Jeffrey’s behaviour was. Different. She had never seen him act like that before. It was almost like what some of the muggleborns called a temper tantrum. But there was a confusing combination of emotions being exhibited. Guilt, anger, frustration, embarrassment, stress, it was all very confusing and strange to her. She just hoped things would simmer down and he could return to be his normal self again. Then again, she was curious to what normal was for him. There were only three options that came to mind when it came to his normal activities. The first option was him out and about running to and from classes to be there early to get his things set up on the desk in his preferred set up to then eagerly talk about them with his classmates or anyone who would listen really. The second possibility was him either taking care of Gustave while talking with Hagrid about or investigating other mystical creatures. The last possibility was one she honestly hoped would dissipate sooner than later. Frequent trips to the hospital wing. It was hard thinking of him out and about without his friend. The kneazle just laid on his bunched-up robe now licking the area Jeffrey had stepped on. From the looks of it there was not any significant injury or harm to him. At this point she did not care about what this would say about her as she gathered her things and knelt by Gustave. If anything, it would show her off as a caring and compassionate person. She was only glad she had finished her course on care of mystical creatures.

“Are you okay?” she felt a little embarrassed talking to a kneazle, but Jeffrey did it all the time and it seemed to understand him even though it could not speak back, “I’m just going to take a look at your tail if that’s okay.”

At first Gustave hissed a little as he transitioned from licking his tail to eyeing her carefully as she advanced. Once she had knelt and offered her hand the kneazle sniffed cautiously before brushing his head against the back of her hand to then go back to his tail. The tuft of hair seemed to be stopping his from comforting himself of his potential injuries. However, he knew that this girl could be trusted and as her hands shook as she got closer to him, Gustave made sure to reassure her with a long loud purr. Malory placed the tip of her tail in her palm while her fingers on her other hand pushed the hair away to get a better look at the surface. To her relief there was no bleeding. There was not even a bruise. It seemed the kneazle just cried out of surprise and then shock more than anything else. She only wished this explained Jeffrey’s odd behaviour.

“C’mon let’s take you to Hagrid.” As she picked up Jeffrey’s robe wrapping up the kneazle inside. It was not ideal for her, but she knew that Jeffrey would have done it had it been someone else’s pet. “I’ll make sure to provide Hagrid with all the details and ask him to drop you off in the commons room if you’d like.” She was starting to feel a little odder as she heard herself. Yet this seemed to have provided some sort of comfort to the kneazle as it purred all the way out of the dining hall.

She could not believe she was doing this. It seemed out of place even for her. Some students saw her in the halls but did not bother saying anything. If they did it was not directed to her and kept at a whisper. With several twists and turns she made her way outside. It was a crisp bright autumn morning with a chilly breeze that caused the leaves to swirl and sway about the trees at the base of the hill beyond the modest hut. Although it was chilly outside it beat the heat of the summer each time. Not that the summer was a terrible season she loved wearing a good summer dress and being out and about with her friends or even better curled up with a good book in her designated reading area next to the large glass window overlooking the small family lake in the back yard. However, there was a sense of comfort that lingered in the autumn air. Sure, she still had to represent her house, but in the greater scheme of things she was in the lower tier which was good and bad because the only pressure she really had was from her parents when it came to the social and magical climb. The major relief was her parents were more concerned about her marks during the academic year than social climbing. They had a specific chart of progress being tracked and projected. As a result, they had built in a new system to help further their goals and rankings by planning them around her holidays. Now her only relief was when she was at Hogwarts.

“Ello there Mal!” Malory was an odd name for the half giant to say without seeming a little embarrassed of the way he said it, so Mal it was, “Say what ‘re ya doin with Gustave there?”

“I am terribly sorry about this Hagrid I just didn’t know who else to turn to.”

“Is Jeffrey doin a’right? Those boys giv’n ‘im trouble again! Merlin’s beard I’ll ‘ave ‘em!” It was alarming to see Hagrid like this as his knuckles popped while he clenched his fists, “I’ll sort’em out this time” as he made his way back into the hut, “Fang y’old lug where’s my umbrella? Gotta teach some third years ‘bout manners.” His footsteps thudded heavily along the creaky wooden floor as he made his way back towards the door, “There this ought ta do it!” as he waved his umbrella triumphantly in his hand, “Now where’n blazes ‘re those boys at? You wanna come in for a cup of tea help settle the nerves?” it was nice and odd to see Hagrid like this. A whirlwind of emotions. He was just about as caring about Jeffrey as Jeffrey was about his kneazle. She knew she had to say something before this went any further and caused any more problems for all three of them now.

“There weren’t any boys involved!” as she tried to get his attention over the thundering stomps and the low rumbling mutters to himself, “Jeffrey and I were talking and well.” She was trying desperately not to have her voice trail off, “He-has he ever used the phrase…mudblood…around you?”

“No!” Hagrid was now a mix of sad and angry, “You call ‘im that? Mal I know you know better!”

“No! Hagrid, please no!” as she pushed her way into the hut now and sat at the round table, “Jeffrey has been using that word like it is interchangeable with muggleborn.”

“No.” the chair creaked loudly as the half giant slumped into it letting his umbrella roll down the side of his leg and clatter along the floor. “Now where did he learn that?”

“Goyle.” Malory rolled her eyes, “from what Jeffrey said-”

Hagrid had slowly transitioned from flabbergasted, to interested, to sad over the course of the story. Malory made sure to include as many details as possible. It was interesting to see the wide range of emotions Hagrid exhibited throughout the story. Then again it was not all that surprising. Hagrid was a kind soul and from her recent encounter it seemed Hagrid was a very emotional person. She only hoped he was as emotional about everybody as he was with Jeffrey. That second year was just as important to Hagrid as Fang from what she could gather. What caused him to sulk was when she had wrapped up her story and told him about Jeffrey’s episode.

“Ah, so he ‘ad a funk.” Hagrid pulled out a dotted handkerchief and dabbed his eyes with it before wiping off his nose.

“A funk?” The wording caught her off guard as she realised, she had been petting Gustave for a considerably long time. Not that it mattered to him. By the middle of the story the kneazle had gone from purring to being lulled to sleep.

“Yeah it’s a phrase he’d use.” As he crumpled up the kerchief before stowing it away in one of his many large pockets, “Picked it up from his mum he said.”

“Did he ever explain what a funk meant?” she had now stopped petting the kneazle and let it rest on the table with the robe.

“Well.” The large man scratched his head trying to find the right words for it, “He said it’s like all of his emotions are bees an’ his mind is the hive.” He traced his finger along the table as he spoke like he was drawing it on the table, “Sometimes one or two bees will enter in at a time. Other times the whole blinkin’ swarm goes in a buzzing all in a rush.” The half giant looked up at her while still facing the table, “When his mind swarms that’s what ‘e calls a funk. All o’ those emotions buzzing around all at once.”

“So, when he was fidgeting with his robes that was him?” she let the question hang there so she could get some better answers. Talking about emotions being like bees just did not make much sense to her.

“It’s like smoking out the nest ‘e says” bringing his attentions back to his company in his hut, “ ‘parently the fidgeting knocks a couple of those emotions loose an’ out o’ his head.” The look of utter confusion on her face told him it was not a very well put explanation, “Simply put he had difficulties sorting out his emotions an’ tries to logic his way out an’ when that doesn’t work well things like this happens.”

“So more like a bubbling cauldron?” as she tried to make more sense of it and use another analogy, “Like day to day stresses are like keeping the brew on the flames. The longer he’s exposed the more the potion bubbles until it eventually spills over.”

“Aye that ‘bout explains it. Except when he fidgets or takes care of Gustave ‘ere it’s like taking the cauldron off the flames if only for a moment. Some days are better though. It’s hard to explain really he’s simple an’ brilliant but also complex an’ a bit daft like when he used the word mud-” his knuckles popped again as he clenched his fists against the table again, “Mud-m well you know. He is a good lad though ‘e just needs some guidance when it comes to what to say ‘n what not to say. Sometimes he just speaks what pops in his little head it seems.” He gave them both a light pause as they thought on that for a moment, “Well you better ‘ead off you’ll be late for class now ‘n don’t worry about his kneazle I’ll take care of it until he calms down ‘n I’ll send him in.”

“Thanks for your time Hagrid I found it very helpful.”

“Ah, don’t you mind now Mal feel free to stop by any time.”

It was a thought that lingered in her head for the rest of the day. So much to where she did not end up having that talk with Amy. A thought that distracted her from her studies and kept her up all night. She was really hoping it was still a crush at this time because if she knew any better, she could have thought she was falling for him. That could not be the case though. He was so naïve and childish. Then she thought about what he said about the kneazle and its ability to identify untrustworthy people. Something that she did not know. Yet he knew. Along with all the details on how to groom and feed it. He was odd, cunning, and cute.


	4. Is Everything Sorted?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just bare with me on this one. I found it fun, but the use of it can be a bit confusing...

IT was terribly comfortable in the small room IT resided in. However, IT did not have any worries at all. Or at least for the most part there were no worries. IT had to admit there were some problems. Though that was not always, most of the times it was simply boring, and It liked that. A door could be heard opening and closing for what seemed to be an emergency. IT could only guess it was another terrible day as headmaster. IT relished in the plight of mortal affairs. Especially when it came to the headmaster. However, there was something wrong with the footsteps in the room. Light footsteps. Familiar footsteps. Had IT a heart then it would be beating quickly as if to race to the point of destruction. Instead IT just sat there in its room unable to move as the light-footed pacing continued. Then the door opened as the light spilled in the room IT had now realised who it was.

“Oh. Merlin’s beard may the fabric of my existence be forever cursed!” as IT realised the little boy that entered the room. He was relieved that he had not spoken a word. Yet. And that was what bothered IT most, “What are you doing here? You should leave. Now!” IT had been resting for a while and there was no time for IT to gather where IT was. So, there was only one thing for IT to do. IT had to make the child leave quickly and IT knew who to yell for. Which was good timing for the little mortal boy had slowly started to settle down and start talking, “Snape! Snape! Severus Snape!” as It looked about the room panicked.

“I actually like Snape.” the boy commented after pacing the room a bit longer as the tension seemed to pass from whatever it was that caused it, “He marks hard but he gives useful notes as well, so I like that in a professor.”

IT dropped its jaw as if It were completely gobsmacked. The boy liked being around Snape the first and foremost professor known to drive most students away like hurricane winds would a serviette. IT hopped about its stool where it sat lazily taking more information in realising where IT was, “Dumbledore! Dumbledore! DUMBLEDORE!”

“Oh…yeah I forgot to tell you when I came it the headmaster is out for the day said something at the Ministry of Magic needed his input on something or another.” His face looked perplexed before he shrugged it off, “Whatever it was it seemed boring, so I just made my way up here.”

“What?” if IT had more facial features possible, they would not do justice, “Then how did you get in here you little rat!”

“I find it crazy a hat can be so bitter.” As he nonchalantly started pacing in the room again. Calm and collected. It was almost as if he enjoyed it, “Oh, and it was the Weasley twins. They like to snoop around it seems and apparently knowing Dumbledore’s passwords to his office is pretty high on the list.”

“Even if that is the case.” The sorting hat grumbled, “It has only been a month. How? No better yet why do they need Dumbledore’s password to his office?”

The sorting hat was answered with a shrug as the boy paced the floor two more times, “Like I said it was high on their list of priorities other than that I kind of tuned them out. Looking out the window was more fun than listening to them.”

“You know that’s a little rude right?” the hat was grumpy and thought if it could make the boy grumpy, he would leave, “People like being listened to.”

“Yeah and people like to talk too.” The boy calmly retorted, “and share way too much for that matter. Plus, I just do not care about what they wanted to talk about. Nobody cares about what I want to talk about.” He paused for a bit then proceeded to pace the floor, “Well… Save you and Hagrid-”

“No just Hagrid. And if I had a body, I’d run out of here. In a heartbeat. A heartbeat you here me.”

“Yeah, but you’re a hat.” The boy shrugged, “and besides you’re a good listener.”

“Only because I don’t have a choice in the matter. In case you forgot I don’t have ears nor a way to plug them to stop your incessant noise.” There was little else IT could do other than continue being nasty until the little mortal left.

“Well that is true too, but you know that if you were to have ears not only would it look weird, but I would also just find a way around that.” As the boy stopped pacing and turned to see the sorting hat with a smug grin.

“You wouldn’t dare.” The indented fabric that served as eyes widened, “You said you wouldn’t do that anymore. You promised!”

“Yes, I did so long as you were being reasonable with me and talked when I come by to visit you.” The boy pointed out, “Besides wouldn’t you like some company every now and again?”

“You know just as well as I that I don’t need any company.” As it glared at him, “I’ve been around since before this school was founded. Trust me I’ve had enough company to last you lifetimes. And besides, you visit too often to casually call it company.”

“No, I don’t!” the boy now leaned up against the door, “I only come by like…” as he started to count it out on his fingers, “Three…no four times a week.”

“That’s on average and you know that!” the old leather furrowed like eyebrows, “Last year your saw me for two whole weeks. I thought I was going to be kidnapped.”

“Hmm more like stolen really.” As he thought about it, “I don’t know if you can kidnap a hat it just doesn’t sound right.”

“In all my years…” the hat muttered to itself in hatred. IT could not stand how much this boy got under its stitches, “Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

“Not for an hour.”

“Great. I can’t wait for the day until I’ve frayed away thanks to you.”

“Oh, come on no need to be sour.” As he moved from the door to the stool giving the hat a nudge with his elbow as he sat next to it, “You talk with me for a little while and I’ll leave you alone.”

“You’re serious?” as the upper edge of leather arched like a brow, “No tricks? This isn’t some sort of sick game?”

“I’m a Greenwood not a Weasley.” The boy chuckled, “besides, I don’t really like games. I get picked last and hit with whatever ball there is involved too often. Even when on the side-lines. I don’t fully grasp why.”

The hat just continued to arch a leathery brow-like structure at the boy. However, this did bring a sense of relief to IT that the boy caused just as much annoyance with mortals. Yet IT also felt a strange sense of pity on the poor boy. The boy had some complications in his life and making friends or having someone to talk to be a difficulty. Sometimes it was not all that being a sentient hat. Especially since this one had abilities some would consider to be unnatural for constructs. The main function of this hat was to sort out thoughts. As a result, this hat had the ability to delve to the deepest reaches of mortal minds. Every secret. Fear. Joy. All of it was present before IT. It was the hats original job to sort out the thought process and memories of the wearer. Reflecting on it the hat realised it was to assist his “master” with his early onset dementia. Had it been that long? To where its original purpose had become obscured through years of use. Years of individuals putting it on and having IT process their skills, abilities, strengths, weaknesses, and potential. There was a point centuries ago IT had agreed to share spells IT had learned of from wizards from times now past. It was incredibly dark in those days. Potentially it could have caused more harm than good had IT been able to function in that manner. Had it not been for the Ministry and Dumbledore all the hat’s knowledge could have been spilt easily into a wearer. Although if all the knowledge of even one subject had been transferred from the hat into a mortal mind IT was sure that the ending result would have led to insanity that could pass for several generations. So, for the safety of mortal affairs it was bound by contract enforced by enchanted stitching literally enforcing even the contract to secrecy. Yet this boy did not want secrets per say. There was a time where the boy wanted to know everything about IT how IT came into existence. Most of which IT could only answer cryptically. The boy had learned the following information from his insistent visits and questioning. Originally the hat had been a living entity. A companion for a powerful sorcerer. Then at one point the soul had been imbued into the sorcerer’s hat. From that point in time it had been passed down from Sorcerer to apprentice. It had been worn by a powerful sorceress which gave muggles the idea for the design of the witch’s hats. Other than its current function IT had been restricted from giving the boy any further information.

“Are you feeling alright? You’re not sick, are you?”

“I’m a hat! How in blazes could I get sick?” it wrinkled up immensely at the thought.

“Well I don’t know I’m not a magical hat! I’m terrible at this type of stuff you should know that. Remember the time I thought Goyle was angry and it turned out he was just hungry.”

“He was both remember. He hit you.”

“I’m sure that was just a supportive punch like friends do.”

“He left a bruise.”

“So, he’s heavy handed-”

“And he’s not a friend. You know that, right?”

“How come?” the boy looked a bit perplexed.

“Because he’s a bloody pureblood!” the hat stood erect with frustration at this point, “And you’re a mud-”

“Whoa hey I know what that means now, and I’d prefer muggleborn. Although I’d also just like to be called Jeffrey.”

“Took you long enough.” The hat grumbled, “Jeffrey.”

“See that wasn’t so bad.”

“Honestly, your abilities of learning are baffling.” As it wrinkled up again in exasperation, “You really need to learn about muggleborn and pureblood relations. They are literally another class above you and no I’m not talking about differences in classes like being in second year compared to your fourth-year crush.”

“I know it’s like nobility versus commoner interaction.” Jeffrey shrugged, “I just don’t like to be confined to them. Other times I just forget about the boundary altogether.”

“So, you mean to say you knew about this all along?”

“Well just since this last train ride in.”

“Merlin have mercy on this poor soul.” The hat almost sunk down to the point of being more like a disc than a hat at that point, “You will have to learn how to conduct yourself properly around them. There are certain procedures, interactions, and customs you will have to adhere to it is no walk in the park as your muggle types would say.”

“So, like goblin etiquette then?” the boy arched an eyebrow although feeling more confident about the situation.

“Yes, like goblin etiquette-” the hat shook itself once again gobsmacked from the words coming out of the little mortal, “No, no, no, no, no, nothing like goblin etiquette! Completely different in fact. Sure, it is polite to bow to those of pureblood but only under specific situations.”

“Well what about newblood?” he asked a little perplexed, “I heard that Hermione was newblood and although it makes sense what does that mean in terms of social interaction and etiquette?”

“Pray you never have to encounter her, boy.” ITs voice went low and foreboding.

“How-” he started to ask.

“That girl has more potential than my stitches have fibres.” IT continued in the same tone, “As a newblood she carries more purity than any pureblood you have ever heard or will ever have the pleasure to encounter. And if it is necessary. Stay on your best behaviour and stay on her good side.”

“So, what about Malory then?” the boy chirped up.

“What?” the hat turned and gave him a quizzical look.

“Well she’s a pureblood, isn’t she?” he shrugged and went to play with the laces on his shoes.

“Did you even listen-” IT looked at him incredulously.

“Yeah avoid Hermione like the plague or give her the respect of the royalty.” He casually waved away the words like they were smoke clouding up his thought process, “What about Malory?”

It was incredibly frustrating. The lack of respect and casual dismissiveness that encased this little mortal, “She’s different.” The hat caved, “Although she is of pureblood her thoughts and commitment to her house are as fickle as seashells dragged along the shore by the changing tides. Yet passionate like blazing fires.” The hat gave him a wary look again trying to bring him out of his silly fantasies, “However, she is still of pureblood and therefore demands your respect.”

“Alright because I was thinking for Christmas-”

“No!” the hat interrupted, “Nothing for Christmas! Nothing for Valentine’s day! She is of pureblood. Those are times for other purebloods to show signs of intent of marriage.”

“Whoa.” As his eyes widened as he slumped back against the wall.

“Yes “whoa” indeed.” The hat mocked, “It is best if you avoid such gift exchanging with her. Maybe go for another mud- erm muggleborn, like yourself.”

“Meh.” The boy shrugged, “I might just spend the days with Hagrid then. There aren’t many classes around those times of year.”

“That is an option.” The hat sat back content, “Just don’t visit me.”

“That wasn’t part of our original agreement.” The boy smiled as he made his way to the door with a new pop in his step, “See you on New Year’s then!”

The hat’s sunken eyes widened in horror from the thought of being locked in that large closet together till midnight, “NO! Don’t! Jeffrey! JEFFREY!!!”

By the time, the hat could protest the young wizard had already made his way to the staircase leading out of Dumbledore’s office. The last words from the boy echoes inside the vacant space between its brims and sent a chill along the old leathery wrinkles. Meanwhile Jeffrey made his way down the stairs with brilliant of ease filled with contentment. Not only was the sorting hat good at providing information it was always something he could meet up and talk with whenever he was having a funk. And with all the talk of what the students have been going through in just the past weeks someone to talk to would have been nice. Just so long as they were not human. It had become that time where classmates started hitting puberty. If not the second years, then definitely the third years. The worse part was is that he would hear too much about either party or their signs of beginning puberty. It seemed to be the talk of the month. From the sounds of it magical potential built up from a linear progression until puberty kicked into place, then from that point it extended at a exponential base from the moment they hit puberty which would vary until they were roughly seventeen. For girls it had begun when their first period started which was unpleasant to hear about while eating oatmeal, although it was comforting that most of the girls would experience less of a growth spurt giving him plenty of time to become taller than them because apparently girls like that in a guy. While for boys it was the moment when they had their first emission either in the night or through… other means which put Jeffrey in a strange position. Because if there were any reason to believe the rumour mill then his magic would have started growing exponentially before he started attending Hogwarts. It was awkward waking up in the middle of the night as a ten year old with discomfort only to have a rather long talk with his father about puberty, but it was good it was all out there and the information had been fully processed. From the sounds of it, it was just as awkward for his father to talk about as it were for him to listen to from his dad. At the end of the talk his father wanted to give a hug, which transitioned awkwardly to a handshake, which melted into a wave and he groggily made his way back to bed.

The awkward part was that Jeffrey could not tell when or if his magic had grown at all. While most other students went on with practices on how to feel the surge of magic residing in them like a well of water. Jeffrey’s magic felt more like pulling water from a stone with a dry sponge. Sure, casting spells had become a bit easier. He would wear gloves his mother gave him as an early birthday present because she knew that his wand felt awkward in his hand. Other than that, the structure and method of casting spells seemed very clinical almost to a point of being mundane. Sure, feathers would float after the tenth attempt, leaves turned into saucers, potions properly bubbled and fizzed, and constellations altered ever so slightly as the seasons progressed. However, there was not any point to where magic seemed to ebb and flow with a sense of ecstasy the rest of the students had expressed. If magical prowess were expressed as various forms of laughter starting at childish giggles Jabba the huts’ hearty bellow then Jeffreys magic was more like that squeaky overdrawn fart that some kids thought they could sneak out during the middle of a test. It was literally like his magic came from a different place in his body or from another source altogether.

With little thought Jeffrey navigated the various stairs, twists, and turns of the castle. It was a very productive first year having learnt most of the routes by befriending some of the house elves. The tricky part was being able to talk to one before they popped away. Funnily enough it seemed like a game for a while, like trying to catch a leprechaun except they do not bite like leprechaun’s do. The little jerks. Then again it was his fault for using a butterfly net to catch them in. apparently using a one-way trap like his father had for squirrels proved to be more affective. He thought it would be fun to catch one to get a wish or two out of them. Turns out that was just a rumour. They just cast spells like most other mystical creatures, but unlike most they remain terribly cautious of how they conduct their castings. Now Jeffrey’s wish was not that big of a deal. At least in his mind it was not, but to the leprechaun it was an opportunity. Jeffrey had wished that he could at the very least look more appealing so that when trying to start a conversation with anyone for that matter they would not be distracted by his odd mannerisms, posture, and possibly forget his topics of interest which at the time were animals and bugs. Mainly bugs. Well that was too vague for some odd reason and he had gone home excited to talk with his dad about the wonderful day he had. Only to find his father bellowing with laughter while his mother fought back a small series of giggles. The Leprechaun had turned him into a clown. Or rather it had used an illusion to make it seem to anyone who looked at him that he was a clown. For Jeffrey when he looked at himself, he just saw himself. So, anytime there was a student that laughed at him, Jeffrey could only think about if the illusion had somehow faded back into existence. It was one of the things that made him want to avoid people. That and very few of them made sense and a lot of them started talking about when they anatomy suffered from the various forms of discharge. Either way it was great to be back in the basement. With a series of rhythmic taps on the correct barrels the lid popped, and Jeffrey made his way into the common room. This was probably one of the main reasons that he had been sorted into this house. He liked how this was the only house that did not need a password to enter the common room. Things were easier for him if either spoken directly, with detail, or both. Most of the time it was both. All the time in fact.

A week or two back he had received a letter from his mother about the whole incident pertaining to the whole mudblood funk. This also arrived with a large package. His mother was disappointed understandably, but to his relief was not sent a howler. Instead she wrote in detail the social implications placed by use of that type of language and that he should avoid doing so. This was then followed by a list of houses both at Hogwarts and family names that were associated with those Hogwarts houses that commonly used those terms most of which were in Slytherin to no surprise. Although Hermione was not like most of the kids in Slytherin. Then again, she was a Newblood. Jeffrey really hoped that was not a period thing two or he might just gag. Either was because of his poor choice and use of words Jeffrey had been handing out written letters of apology and handing them out. With each letter of apology Jeffrey had attached a red container full of chocolate from the large package. It was strange when he apologized to the girls. He thought it would be best to apologise to them first seeing he generally got along better with the girls at this school. Most were understanding, some were angry and just ate the chocolate, while some giggled and squeaked to each other when they thought he was out of earshot. Despite how much time he had spent around girls they still made no sense.

The guys took it well to his surprise. Sure a few of them just tore up the letters like some of the girls and smashed the chocolates, but it was still progress and he had done his part. One guy opened and hugged him and started crying at one point and Jeffrey had to drag him along to get to class on time. The rest had just remained odd. Incredibly nonchalant about the whole thing. The group of students he had the most difficulty apologizing to and the final group on his list were the quidditch players. Slytherin did not need or get any. The Gryffindor players just ate the chocolate and shrugged clearly being over the situation. Ravenclaw gave him an essay in response detailing the cruel use of his language along with helpful notes on how to better function in the wizarding society labelling it, “Wizard talk for dummies”. All that remained now was the Hufflepuff team. Which was a little rough because they always saw each other so they knew they were going to receive chocolate. Some had already snuck in and grabbed a box or two but there were plenty so Jeffrey could care less.

“Well Greenwood.” team captain Zacharias spoke for the rest of them, “Maltesers?” as he shook the small red box.

“Yes, Zacharias.” He tried holding his ground, but it probably did not come anywhere near to that, “My mum thought it would be best. She always found it better than chocolate frogs at least.”

“Good enough reasoning to me.” The captain smiled as he looked back towards the team. Jeffrey noticed that Cedric had taken his letter and chocolate and gone up to his dorm, probably tired from training or classes, “Ever thought of joining the team?”

“Me?” he pointed to himself, “No, I have the hand-eye coordination of a paraplegic and the physical prowess of a Cornish pixie.”

“Oh, please nothing a bit of practice couldn’t fix.” As he wrapped his arm around Jeffrey, “besides, I know a position on the team you’d be great at.” Swinging his arm carrying Jeffrey with him with brilliant ease, “Am I right team?”


	5. Bludger? What Bludger?

“Gosh I love Maltesers.” Amy seemed much chipper than usual at lunch, “Did you want some?” as he held the box towards Mal who looked at the red box quizzically.

“What do they do?” she asked as she held her hand out with interest.

“Besides roll around. They taste good.” Amy could not help but chuckle to herself about that, “Sorry muggle candies just focus on flavour they don’t do things like hop away like chocolate frogs and such.” She waved her hand dismissively to get another good handful.

“Where did you get these from anyway?” as Mal put one in her mouth cautiously as if still suspicious of something to happen.

The rich and smooth chocolate was an absolute dream. It was a perfect balance of sweet without being too rich to where she would get a stomach-ache any time soon. Then it hit her. Something gritty and porous slid along her tongue and brushed against the roof of her mouth. She knew it. Something had to be wrong with it. It was muggle candy after all.

“Well that was cruel.” As she was tempted to brush her tongue off with a cloth with the odd ball still inside, “what is in that?”

“Oh, you mean the malt ball.” Her friends’ shoulders relaxed, “yeah it’s just another part of the sweet I can understand the alarm now thinking back on it. I was never too fond of the malt ball in the centre. Just suck on it and let it dissolve.”

Her friend was right though. As soon as she followed the advice, she realised it was just as pleasant as the chocolate itself. They both laughed at the occasion and shared the chocolate amongst each other having already finished lunch. It was crucial for them to do so. Originally it was for studying. But it slowly transitioned to talking about boys. It was not like Mal had an issue with talking about guys, she just did not like having to deal with it outside of Hogwarts. And at this time of day it was like they all just arrived out of nowhere. For some of them it was the case because they had just woken up and groggily made their way in.

“Say what you will about their quidditch team.” Amy started, “But their captain makes my heart skip.”

“Oh? Zacharias? Yeah, I heard he was a decent player and he looks alright. Not my type really, but if you like him-”

“No not him.” It was like Mal had offended her honour as she scooted closer and moved her face for her, “Him.”

As Mal’s head was turned it started to make more and more sense. From his dark almost wind-swept hair, although it was slightly parted, to his grey eyes, and handsome face she could understand Amy’s interest. Handsome was not doing him any justice. He made his way over to his table eyeing up the room with each step. His lip curled into a smile as he walked by looking vaguely in their direction. For all they could tell it was directed at them and they could honestly care less if his gaze was not on them. Their gaze was on him and that seemed to do the trick. Once locked on those grey eyes she could understand Amy’s hype. Mal could feel her cheeks get flush whilst Amy was squealing and hoping up and down in her seat.

“Who is he?” Mal asked while doing her best not to take her eyes off him for fear he would disappear like a ghost.

“That’s Cedric!” Amy squealed which made him turn and stare at them for a moment. The two girls froze trying their hardest not to embarrass themselves in front of him. With a shrug he turned back to his table and started on his lunch, “He is so hot.” Amy now straightened her back while she ate her chocolates one at a time instead of her usual handful, “Like incredibly hot.”

“I’m not going to deny it.” Mal’s voice trailed off again as she watched him laughing at someone’s joke, “But there is no way I’d have a chance.”

“What’s amazing is that even though he is a pureblood he also knows some things about muggles too.” Amy’s posture was slowly starting to melt like the chocolate in her hand as she watched him.

“Is it odd we are staring a guy down while he is eating lunch though?”

“No.” her friend interjected, “It would be a crime. No, a disservice to him if we did not.”

“Well if you say so.” Mal giggled, “Just make sure you clean off that chocolate before potions class who knows how Snape will react.”

“Huh?” as she finally drew her attention to her chocolate coated fingers. She had totally forgotten how many Maltesers she had in her hand coating her palm and fingers in the creamy goodness that is chocolate, “Ohhhhh, please give me a napkin I don’t want Cedric to see me this way!”

“My for all the times you tease me about liking Jeffrey it’s nice to see you being the emotionally vulnerable one for a change.” She could not help but laugh this time around, “Seems like my napkin is too dirty for you. You might just have to lick your fingers off, with any luck Cedric won’t see.” She giggled; it was a relief that she was not the only one who got terribly embarrassed over a boy.

“Oh, c’mon that’s just mean!” as she started to hurriedly like her fingers clean while scrambling for a napkin, “You and I both know that your napkin is unused.”

“Alright then.” As she stopped laughing. At this point the joke had worn thin. She knew that if it were the other way around, she would hope better from Amy.

Sure, Cedric was handsome, she knew that and from the reactions from others along the dining hall. However, there was a sort of appeal to it all. She could not put her finger on it but there was something about being around those who are muggleborn or familiar with muggle customs and traditions that made boys like Cedric stand out more. There was something about not having the hassle of being a pureblood that seemed to make them more laid back and happy. Almost as if completely carefree. Like they had a secret to life that made it even more bearable. It took a while for her to realise that she had spaced off while Amy was ogling Cedric whilst finishing off her candies. She knew that Cedric was a pureblood and not muggleborn so the struggle of maintaining appearances and the like would still be a burden. Malory needed something different. Her thoughts carried on as she looked about the hall. Starting off slowly and gradually building speed with every circulation of her look about the hall. Then it hit her like she had ran directly into a brick wall.

“Say have you seen Jeffrey around?” Mal asked trying to sound calm and collected about the other students but her friend understood that it was her way of showing genuine concern.

“Oh, yeah now that you mention it.” Amy looked about the dining hall several times over, “I haven’t seen him around over the past couple of days. I thought it was odd, but I could have only imagined it was just poor timing that we didn’t see him.”

“I was afraid to hear that.” As Mal gathered her things and started to make her way out of the dining hall.

“Where are you headed?” Amy was a bit startled but did not want to draw further attention especially due to Mal’s position as a pureblood.

“Oh, just to get some fresh air and spend some time alone.”

She knew it would have been improper for her to show so much concern. Although there would only be problems if any of the other purebloods got in the way of things. Was it a member of her own house she could talk them out through reasoning? While Gryffindor purebloods would be less of an issue in comparison. The worst house when it came to pureblood customs and purity would be Slytherin. And while there were some purebloods in Hufflepuff not many of them really cared about what she did. The only pureblood she knew of in Hufflepuff house was Cedric. And Cedric. Well he seemed preoccupied. Probably to her relief. She was not sure how she would act or what she would say to a guy that handsome. She would probably say something to trade the attention to someone else at their expense like Amy having a crush on him. It was a terrible move but like in games of wizards’ chess sacrifices must be made to keep yourself in the game. A sigh of relief escaped her mouth as she made her way around the corner leading to the hospital wing.

“Oof. Oh, I’m sorry that was my fault I was lost in thought there.”

She realised she had let out a sigh a little too soon and now wished she could suck all the air back in. Her hands getting instantly clammy while her face got flush. It was one thing when you see your crush in the same room or in the distance in the hallway. But when you bump into them whilst meaning to check up on them. In that close of a proximity it did not matter who it was you had a crush on, she was sure of it, all the things you wish to say never come out right. So, instead she decided to bite her lip to stop herself from saying something stupid.

“Oh, did you bite your tongue?” Jeffrey moved closer to get a look at it.

“N-no that’s not what happened.” She turned her head slightly trying to avoid eye contact as she felt the heat rush along her cheeks.

“Is it a fever then?” as he moved even closer moving some of her hair away from her face only to rest the back of his hand on her forehead, “You’re head does seem a little warm.”

“That’s not it either.” She went from flustered to shocked as he positioned himself so closely still resting his hand on her head, “I came to see if you were doing alright.” What was she thinking saying something like that, had she gone crazy?

“Ah.” As he moved back and placed his hand on the back of his head looking up as if to distract himself from the mentioned concern, “Well I’m doing better now. Madam Pomfrey cleared me to return to my dorm after I talk with a Professor about my teams’ behaviour. Maybe Snape will be the best choice.” He started talking to himself now more than to her.

“May I ask what happened?” she was trying to sound concerned without giving any hints away that she liked him. It would be awkward if those feelings were not reciprocated.

“Oh, I was put on the quidditch team.” He said bluntly shrugging off his embarrassment now only to fit his hands into the pockets of his robes.

“Oh? What position are you- er, were you playing?”

“Bludger.” As all expression fell from his face as his eyes locked on to hers.

“Don’t you mean beater?” the flushness on her face ran away with the icy chill that his gaze presented her with.

“No, I mean bludger.” As he slowly started resuming his walk looking back briefly as if an invite for her to follow, “See after you pointed out that detail about the term mudblood I had a lot of apologies to give.” She could feel a knot tying up in her gut with each word that landed heavily, “Some took their apologies well while others.” He paused letting out a ragged sigh, “Others were not so willing to take an apology that soon. Or in the manner I was instructed to conduct said apologies in.”

“I’m so sorry.” She looked down at her shoes as she tried to keep up with his pace. He moved quickly given his height. He was not short, but she suspected that his stride would have been a limiting factor in terms of his velocity as he navigated the halls.

“Why are you apologizing?” he stopped abruptly, and she almost went bright red as she almost bumped into him again, “You did nothing wrong.”

“Well had I not pointed out how offensive that term was I could have spared you-”

“It was necessary for me to know.” As he let out a heavy sigh, “It’s just another one of those things that I had to learn the hard way. Besides I’m sure the team has got it all out of their system. If not, then I’m sure the chocolate I gave them would have helped settle things.”

“Amy seemed pretty glad about her box, when and why did you apologize to her?”

“I sent it by owl.” He shrugged as he then continued to walk down the hall, “I’m actually surprised my owl sent it properly, I’ll have to make some notes about that.” He went back to talking to himself again.

It was good to see that he was still being himself given the circumstances of their last encounter and the events that followed shortly afterwards. When she had the opportunity to catch glimpses of him during some of his breaks as he re-evaluated where he was and where he needed to go. They were unpleasant. He had several bruises along his forehead and jaw still. Upon turning around, she noticed his robes flowing with his quick spiral movements showing bandages wrapped about his wrists and forearms. Given the amount of time he had been in the hospital wing she could only imagine that he had sustained some significant injuries. She would have to remember to send Madam Pomfrey a thank you card. Although thinking it over again that may not be the best course of action. Knowing how much time Jeffrey spends in the hospital wing she could only imagine Madam Pomfrey accidentally spilling the every-flavoured beans on the subject. Mal was not sure if she could handle that level of embarrassment. Maybe she will send her a Christmas give to disguise her appreciation for her diligence and care in the hospital wing.

“Can I ask you something?” for some reason that phrasing had caused her to stop dead in her tracks as she could feel her heart begin to race. He seemed serious about it. Those hazel eyes locked on her again while he put his hands back into his robe pockets.

“Sure!” she blurted out a little startled and a little eager to hear the question. She was not sure what to expect but she desperately hoped it both was and was not about how she felt about him. Then again, she was not sure that he had a clue about it. Mal was particular to slightly drop hints but to never have them spaced closely enough to each other as to rise suspicion. And that went for Jeffrey as well as all the other boys here at Hogwarts. The second to last thing she wanted to have happen other than him finding out before admitting his potential feelings for her was everyone else knowing before he did.

“Why did you decide to come and see me at the hospital wing?” he paused for a moment as his face went red slightly before returning to his normal colour, “If that was your purpose. Visiting the hospital wing.”

“Well.” She needed to do something other than biting her lip or else she would never get an answer out and that seemed to be a bigger problem at the moment than blurting out her feelings, “I just hadn’t seen you in a while and I found it odd.” She played with her hair as she tried to avoid going bright red again, “You usually show up for meals at fixed points in time, arrive to classes early, and usually never miss a day unless in the hospital wing.”

“Huh. That’s interesting.” As he stood there with that puzzled/contemplative look on his face while he rested his right arm on his left cupping his head while being lost in thought for a moment, “Usually I’m the one to observe people and their patterns.” She could feel her chest tighten with anxiety thinking he would have figured it all out now, “It’s good to know I’m not the only one paying attention to everything that goes on in a room.”

“Yeah.” That was all she could say to save herself from breathing out a sigh of relief that he had not caught on. She had to break eye contact at that point. She was not sure if she could take this much attention from him at this proximity.

Then something happened. She almost thought she was getting a fever now. Either that or she felt like she was going to feel sick. Only to find a sense of comfort and concern intermingled into one beautiful and startling moment. Her eyes were wide at this point as she realised what was happening. He had her wrapped in his arms held closely to his chest. She thought he would have felt a bit rough given his moderately thin build, but she was surprised at how gentle and warm his touch was. She was surprised to find that he smelled like a gentle blend of lavender and mint. An odd clash of smells but at such a level of light concentration to where neither overpowered the other. Mal looked around urgently to make sure nobody was around. She was so busy in keeping up with him that she had forgotten where they were. Her eyes widened as she saw a set of eyes staring back at her. That startle was brief as she realised it was just her reflection. Looking about the room there were several mirrors about the room, but other than that they were the only two inside. She did not even know that there was such a room like this in the castle.

“Thanks anyway.” He said finally breaking the silence that had felt like hours as he held her, “Most other people find me annoying.” As he let her go and smiled briefly. Mal knew that she was on the verge of saying something stupid. She had to be quick to change the subject.

“So, where are we? I don’t recall this classroom.”

“Beats me.” He shrugged nonchalantly, “I just had a rough time last year and stumbled upon this room one day. It seemed to be secretive since anytime I needed to find this room, I’d find it and be the only person inside each time. Pretty convenient if you ask me.”

“No arguments here.” She was both relieved and sad when he had let go of her.

“Well we best be off.” He smiled as he made his way to the door holding it open for her, “I’ll most likely see you around dinner around the usual time.”

“Oh, are you going to sit with us?” she could feel the all too familiar blush returning at the thought of Amy teasing them discretely while making them sit close to each other again.

“Not likely.” As he held the back of his head again with a slight smile, “I thought you were just as observant as I am, if you were you’d know I try to make eye contact with you at six-thirty during lunch.” Mal started to see a little blush creeping up on him this time and felt terribly relieved by it, “You know as a friendly thing.” He said quickly trying to justify it, “Like a reminder that we recognise each other as friends.” Wow he was not terribly smooth when it came to flirty talk.

“Oh. Yeah, sorry it has been a while since you’ve been at the dining hall I almost forgot.” She tried to recover quickly to try and hide any potential embarrassment from either party.

“Well, I’ll see you around then.” He smiled briefly and nodded and closed the door behind him only to make his way towards potions class as she stood there in the hall wordless.

She did not know how or what to feel, but there was something about the time she had spent however briefly that seemed magical. Sure, she had been close to him before. But that close. That was next level even for her. Had it happened with anyone else and anywhere else it would have spoken volumes and most certainly reached the ears of her parents. However, it did not. Instead it was perfect. He had chosen a time and place where nobody could or from how he explained it would find them engaged in such physical intimacy. Sure, there were hugs given in Hogwarts but not a whole lot when it came to purebloods and expression. Most of the people who showed such intimacy were muggleborn, extremely close friends, or lovers. It would have been nice if it were something great like close friends. However, knowing her friends, the twins from Gryffindor, and just about anyone from Slytherin it would have become wildfire. She was still surprised about his scent. The lavender was soothing and that made sense, it was the mint scent intermingled that caused her eyebrow to arch as she dwelt upon it. Her train of thought slowly started to shift from his smell back to the hug. It seemed so. Out of the blue. Although Jeffrey was odd even in her perspective that was still the strangest thing he had done yet. Then again, he gave Maltesers to everyone he had on a list of people he offended. Still the hug was uncommon. Jeffrey did not seem like someone who enjoyed physical contact. On the best of days, he would give handshakes but that was only when introduced to other people. All she did was go to visit him. And on a day when he was admitted out of the hospital wing at that. She was not sure why he did it, but regardless he did it anyway. Mal could feel her face become warm again as she thought about it. The hug was so comforting she did not even know that she needed it. Better yet how were his robes so soft? They were of the same material as all the other students and yet his felt like it the sturdy material had been beaten against rocks until the fabric hung along his frame. It was like he was wearing a robe of fresh fluffed wool. Nothing like what the robes felt like. Her robes she wore for school were made of cotton but seemed like they were made from a stiffer material. Almost like they were permanently ironed stiff. She did not even know how cold the halls were until she was embraced. It was like being wrapped in one of those heavy warm muggle blankets Amy shared with her during studies last Christmas.

It was the chill of the hallway that woke herself up from her train of thought. Lunch was way over now, and potions class was going to start anytime soon. The only indicator was the large number of students making their way through the halls. She tried to get her feet to move but felt like she was glued into place. There was excitement that crept up and swelled inside of her. She did not know how much she missed those mealtime glances until he looked at her the way he did today. Now he was in good enough condition it was something to look forward to. she shook her head to try and avoid blushing again which caused all her hair to flow everywhere. She could feel her ears burn as the two Weasley twins passed by as she moved her hair back behind her ears. Mal noticed them looking at her and whispering to each other about something. There was an odd piece of paper one of them was holding she could not make it out entirely, but she could only guess it was a map of the school. However, that made no sense. Why would those two need a map? It was something she would have to talk to Amy about along with her walk with Jeffrey and the strange room.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter may be late.

It was the twenty-fifth of October and was a crucial time for Jeffrey to get a gift for his parents’ anniversary. This was not a typical thing to do, but he felt like it would be nice for a change. However, he wanted to get his parents something special. Both were interested in stars and all that stuff. They even had a projector set up to where they could view constellation within the comfort of their own home. The only problem with that was in their last letter they had mentioned the projector had broken. So, he planned on getting something that would easily replace that. With any luck his mom could convince his father that it was a new device decreasing suspicion of him going to a wizard school. There was only one problem.

“Welcome Mr. Greenwood.” The goblin bowed from behind his podium.

“A pleasure to see you again Bramblehorn.” Jeffrey bowed deeply stepping almost into a backward lunge with the left leg extended, the right leg tucked in, his left hand upon his right chest whilst the right was held behind his back around the base of the spine, “Is Bloodthorn here?”

“Unfortunately, not.” Bramblehorn would have grimaced but instead smiled a jagged and toothy grin, “But I do appreciate your respect for our customs.”

“The pleasure is mine to have.” As he returned to his normal posture, “And the company the better.”

“If the pleasure may be mine, I would be glad to work with your banking requests.” The toothy grin now started to creep up slowly.

“Then we shall bank.” And this time Jeffrey responded with an equally toothy smile.

“Will you be taking a loan with us today Mr. Greenwood?” as he sorted papers giddy at the opportunity that lay before him.

“Not today.” Jeffrey looked at his feet as he heard the papers cease their shuffling, “I wish to withdraw some funds for personal use in Diagon Alley.” Bramblehorn’s smile almost fell apart into disbelief and horror, “But I would like to offer a donation if you can find a good cause.”

“I am glad to hear that.” As the two shared a knowing smile, “And how much would this donation be?”

“The withdrawal will be fifty galleons.” Jeffrey paused as he let another toothy grin creep up, “And the donation will be triple.”

“Is that so Mr. Greenwood?” He would have given a toothy grin in response, but instead his face seemed like it was about to slump completely to the end of his chin. “That would be the rest of your savings.” Looking over the podium to stare him in the eye, “You will have no funds available and should you require any additional funds I have to warn you it will only be available through use of a loan.”

“Now you and I both know that would not be a problem.” Jeffrey felt his aptitude for goblin culture start to slip through his fingers as his shoulders slumped as he figured how he would find funds for any future endeavours.

“Do you wish to proceed with your financial actions?” the goblin arched an eyebrow both happy and concerned for his friend, “You know that there are others that are contributing to the cause?”

“I do, and I wish to proceed with my financial action.” Jeffrey smiled as he had warm butterfly feelings knowing where his funds were going on, “You and I both know that every piece counts.”

“I swear some of you wizards these days.” Bramblethorn could not help but chuckle to himself, “May I ask what it is you plan on purchasing today?”

“Something like a travel size planetarium if at all possible.” Jeffrey shrugged uncertain of whether the goblin knew what he was talking about.

“I’m sure we have something fitting that description.” The goblin looked cheery as he made mention.

“And how much would it cost?” as he arched an eyebrow.

“Twenty-five galleons.” The goblin smirked. He knew that magic of this magnitude came at a fair price especially since it gave a perfect display of the constellations in the moment they occurred. They normally come at the price of seventy galleons and Bramblethorn did not want to ruin his reputation at the bank. However, it was better to go a few galleons out to help a friend.

“Well then.” As he paced briefly, “That means I have twenty-five galleons left.”

“Indeed Mr. Greenwood.”

“In that case make my donation one hundred and seventy-five galleons.”

“B-but Mr. Greenwood.” The goblin could not help but smile.

“I know that in terms of finances I’m in a bit of a weird situation.” He shrugged, “But something tells me that you have altered the price for my betterment. It was a kind gesture, so I thought it would be best to return the favour.”

“Well then.” The goblin grinned eyes and teeth glinting, “I will make sure the package is delivered to your parents before the end of the day.”

“You have my gratitude Bramblethorn.” As Jeffrey took another deep bow, “I look forward to our next exchange.”

“The pleasure is mine.” Bramblethorn responded with a similar bow, “You would make a terrible Goblin.” He grinned a rather sharp toothed grin.

“T-thank you?” his voice cracked a bit uncertain if it was puberty or concern at his friends’ comment, “At any rate I look forward to our next visit.”

“Likewise, Mr. Greenwood.”

By the time Jeffrey had left the bank it was darker as the grey clouds settled in, yet there was no rain. Instead the clouds just loomed over with the ominous potential for a proper British deluge. There would have been no better time for it to make his day go from terrible to worse within seconds. He was terribly ill prepared for rainfall. He wore all muggle apparel; a grey jumper, blue t-shirt, with denim trousers, brown trainers, and finally his scarf which he wore on most days like this it was more comfortable for him than his robes. It was a relief that he could go around wherever he needed to without need to worry about a dress code. Sure, it was helpful and gave him very few options. The only problem was they were not terribly comfortable. It was not so easy running in robes as much which is probably more his fault for buying second-hand robes last minute.

He did not mind the weather being the way it was though. Grey clouds kept the bright light of the sun at bay which was welcomed since the summer was exceptionally bright. Autumn was one of his favourite seasons. It was a combination of the colours of the leaves that danced along the roads and along rooftops along with the slight chill in the air as winter crept slowly behind. For him it was ideal to warm yourself up than to try and cool yourself down. His strides were long but not so much as to overextend himself. He made a point of stepping on every other stone tile along the way. Each tile was roughly the length of his foot, yet they were laid down like bricks in their pattern. There was no explanation for why he did this, he just found it comfortable. It was times like these where he would focus on the now and what he was doing. Sometimes this made him completely oblivious of his surroundings. Most of the time to his downfall. This, however, was not one of those days.

“Damned thing bit me!” one kid cried out.

“Of course, it did they’re called biting fairies for a reason.” The other kid laughed at his friends’ expense.

Jeffrey’s eyes went wide with excitement. Doxy’s otherwise known as the “biting fairy” they are well known for their bit although overall harmless they do bite rather often when not wanting to be handled. Which is all the time. Those unfamiliar with this form of fairy often confuse it with a Behir wyrmling due to their lizard-like appearance. However, those more familiar with the Behir would know that they have three sets of arms and legs where the Doxy only has two, respectively. Another distinguishing feature of a Doxy is their wings which look almost ear-like only due to their position although leathery in texture like that of a bat. The other main distinguishing factors of a Behir is how large they are in comparison and their ability to shoot lightning, something he wished not to witness in person.

“If you leave it alone it won’t bite you.” He interrupted as the boys tried holding the doxy by the wings, “And don’t hold it by the wings it will only make it angrier.”

“We just want to play with it.” The one boy smiled a snaggle toothed smile.

“I’m sure you are.” He said flatly, “Just let it go, it is much better to watch than it is to hold. You have to trust me on this one I spent last fall learning the hard way too.”

“Why do you care about us and how we play with it?” the other boy arched an eyebrow before yelping in pain from another bite.

“Why do I care?” Jeffrey gave the boys a puzzled look, “I don’t care about you two at all. Matter of fact this creature should be at a den with others prepping for hibernation. Now, either it is wild, and you stumbled upon it trying to get home, or…” he paused briefly eyeing them all up.

The two boys seemed more like friends than family. The one with the snaggled teeth had black straight hair, freckles, and grey eyes whilst the other was incredibly pasty, with brown curly hair, and dark green eyes. Each of them had roughly the same build, and height, never mind the fact they were probably only a year apart. From the amount of soil on their clothes Jeffrey figured they were playing around the dusty patches scattered about Diagon Alley chasing the Doxy. The Doxy itself was brown in various patters that would easily help as camouflage with the brown leaves. He figured the boys were about eight and nine respectively and were jumping on leaves when they stumbled upon the fairy. Still their age was no excuse for their treatment of the creature. Sure, it would seem hypocritical of him having done similar things just last year, but it was to get a better understanding of the creature. Its likes, dislikes, behaviour, emotions, habits, traits, anatomy, everything really. He found it fascinating albeit wrong having learned it in such a brutal fashion. It was never his intention to study it in such a brutal manner, but the biting did not help the situation in the slightest. Although the Doxy was known for its biting it was no different than being bit by a generic lizard. Quick, in succession, startling at first, and on a few occasions would draw a little blood. However, something the boys were doing made it seem a little crueller than when he studied them. Simply the boys had not matured enough to know that the creature could feel just like they could. It was obvious from his personal investigation of the Doxy that this one was a pet, but not one to either of the boys. The small details gave it away. From the well-fed gut, thin frame, well-kept skin, and trimmed nails it was obviously not from the wild. That and the creatures preferred more temperate forests and climates with warmth and humidity rather than the cold streets of London.

“It is a pet.” He could not help but watch the kids’ jaws drop, “Now where is the owner.”

“Well Sam wa-” one of the boys started talking.

“I could care less on whose Doxy this is.” He placed his hand on his face irritated, “Just tell me where he is so I can return it to its owner.”

“But we’re not done playi- ouch!” as the little Doxy hung on the boys’ finger as he shook his hand.

“Serves you right, now hand it over or I’ll have you vomiting slugs for a week.” As Jeffrey pulled out his wand ignoring the sensation of the grip as his eyes narrowed on them, “And if you think I won’t do it, try me. I dare you.”

It was reckless behaviour like this that got him in trouble in muggle schools. There was just something about the behaviour outside of the classroom that bothered him. Something animalistic. However, he found it difficult labelling it as such. If it were animalistic, he could have coped with it, learning the system, and thriving in it. Even though there was a patter to it, it was unbridled chaos. Some would have favour in certain groups due to physical prowess whether it was for sport or bullying, while others gained favour from the populace through gossip and talk. Things Jeffrey was not good at in the slightest. When it came to sports it varied terribly from a day to day and sport basis. One day he would be the dodgeball champ. The next he would be the first picked and the first person out. When it came to talk, he just did not thrive. Small talk seemed to cause more stress and effort than most discussions on a topic. Even then his perspective and input seemed a little harsh to put it lightly. Other times he had nothing to contribute and he would sit there quietly, or he would dominate the conversation with his area of interest. It made him an easy target for bullying. Mainly because he was annoying but did not realise it until after the matter. As a result, it had made him cautious of people, made him observant, made him keep his guard up.

“Oh, c’mon we just want to play a little longer-”

“Slugulus Eructo.” Jeffrey’s face twitched angrily while the one who was shaking the Doxy started to belch slugs, “I warned you. Now, hand over the Doxy and be on your way or else belching slugs will be the least of your concerns.”

The one boy shrieked and helped his friend who was now doubled over as slug after slug drizzled from his mouth. Jeffrey could only imagine how terrible vomiting slugs would be like. They probably had a somewhat buttery taste to them whilst sliding out of the mouth like phlegm with a coarse underside. Like a slippery scab that would foam if you ate salty foods. Jeffrey could not wait to see the expression on the boys’ face as each slug passed through the boys’ stomach and splatted along the floor. It was wonderful as he watched the boys leaving a trail of their own folly. It was a fitting punishment for children that treated mystical creatures like insects. There are a variety of persons in this world. Just as there are a variety of creatures. Some would call them monsters and treat them as such. For their own enjoyment, whether for weal or woe. Both were extremes that should be avoided. By treating each mystical creature like the owner of this Doxy did, it destroyed the potential of their greatest mystical nature making them merely a pet. Sure, this did vary depending on the type of mystical creature since certain forms of creatures are well known for being domesticated it is a common mistake. This made Jeffrey hypocritical had it not been for factor that Gustave was a genetic anomaly that would otherwise lead to his demise. Likewise, treating a creature just like a monster it would only cause them to modify their behaviour until they had learned to accept it as truth. It was the later that made humans the worst monster of all.

“There, there it’s alright now.” As Jeffrey held out his hand flat against the floor save his thumb which he wiggled slightly as close to his wrist as possible, “I won’t hurt you I promise.”

As mentioned before the Doxy is a lizard-like fairy and thus its urges were reflective of that of the muggle creature. Wiggling his thumb in this manner gave the illusion of a large worm-like bug. The Doxy skittered along the ground and latched on his thumb as expected. Its eyes bulged upon the realisation that it was not a worm but the taste of human tissue once again. The Doxy spread itself flat along his palm all four arms and legs strewn along his hand as the fairy’s belly slapped with a light popping sound. The eyes darted about waiting for something to happen. It was to be expected as the Doxy, even though called the biting fairy, is no more than a scavenger and prey creature. Their diet consists of fresh berries and in the worst scenario raisins or sundried fruits, although it is worth noting that given the opportunity, they would gobble down any insects in sight. Another reason why it was called the biting fairy, put a bug in its path and it was like throwing chum in shark infested waters.

“Colour me impressed.” Jeffrey was startled at the sudden interruption, “You are probably one of the few humans that impress me. Up to this point you would have made a wonderful Goblin. The passion, anger, and drive. Even the cruel execution of the slug spell on defenceless children.” Bramblethorn expressed his toothy smile, “Until you started taking care of Sir Digitus here.”

“You give me a brief lecture on Goblin behaviour, but you name your Doxy Sir Digitus?” Jeffrey arched an eyebrow, “Even then isn’t naming your Doxy that something more human than Goblinoid in nature? Surely you see the irony.”

“The irony is not lost on me Mr. Greenwood.” As Bramblethorn pulled out a bag as Sir Digitus lept inside, “However, thank you for your efforts.”

“My pleasure.” As Jeffrey bowed, “I’m glad you see that, humans don’t even when it looks them in the face.”

“You say that with such bone chilling coldness it is almost as if you don’t relate with your own kind.” The goblin could not help but grin.

“I’m just aware of the flaws of my race. Humans are complex abominations. Beautiful, complex, abominations.”

“I see we are no longer talking about just your race.” Bramblethorn could not help but cackle, “How is it you can fluctuate so quickly? You went from content, to frustrated, to considerate, to reflectively critical within minutes.”

“As I said we are complex.” Jeffrey’s shoulders slumped while each word dropped with nonchalant overtones, “Are you on your break? I am more than willing to walk you back.”

“I am more than capable of making back to work.” As he gave another bow, “Other than testing what kind of human you were I came to inform you that your parcel has been delivered. I should also inform you that your mother had left me in charge of presenting you with a parcel in exchange.”

“I thought I had passed all of the tests when it came to determining my relations towards the Goblin kind. I even participated in the passage of the iron eye.” Jeffrey briefly captioned the events that transpired, “However, you said I have a package?”

“Ugh, yes Mr. Greenwood.” It was strange to see Bramblethorn act this way. The goblin riffled through its pockets for a moment as it pulled out another bag slowly unfolding it until, “Yes, but given the emotions you have traversed through I find it best if I leave you with this.” After unfolding the bag, the goblin pulled out a moderately sized parcel, on it there was a letter with his mothers writing upon it, “May our next interaction be under more favourable circumstances.” And with that Bramblethorn excused himself as the dark clouds slowly crept in.

Jeffrey was confused as he held the package. It was lighter than he thought it was going to be given the size of it. However, there was little to no time for him to ponder on the contents in the box. The most concerning item was the letter. It was a light green almost greyish envelope, plain in terms of style, and only outstanding indicators were the writing on the envelope. It was most certainly his mother’s handwriting. However, it was written with a heavier hand than normal:

“My Dearest Jeffrey,

I know that your birthday was not until a month from now, but I thought it would be more useful for you now given that Bonfire Night is in just a few days. I know that fireworks have not been a favourable sound for you since we took you to our first Bonfire Night. Since then we had tried to make the day a bit easier for you, but this time around I think I have found a proper solution. I would ask that you open the package now before reading any further.”

With that Jeffrey started to open the parcel. He paused briefly as the rain had now started to fall into the streets. The dark sky brought forth a sad overtone as a few drops clung to the packaging. As the rain had swept through the streets the air began to chill even further causing the hair along the back of his neck to stand. He opened it with curiosity parting the wrapping paper. To his surprise it turned out to be a muggle device which he looked forward to having. It was a Walkman cassette player with headphones. There were several cassettes included in the package. A smile curled as he turned back to the letter:

“I remember you looking at one in a store catalogue and knew it would be a good gift for you. Hopefully by listening to music it can help drown out the sudden bursts around Bonfire Night and when practicing your spells and potions. I provided you with mix tapes of some of your favourite songs. There will also be no need to worry about changing the batteries either. I know you thought I never used magic anymore, but I did enchant it, so you never have to worry about it dying on you. If you don’t mind humouring me one last time, please pick a tape and play it in your new Walkman.”

Jeffrey took his time to carefully choose a tape. There were roughly eight tapes and each one of them had a different sticker placed on them. They were separated by different colours on the cassettes to make them stand out as to avoid confusion. Placing the headphones over his ears it was comfortable as the rain was lightly dampened out. The cassette clicked into place as the tune started to play:

“I find it difficult expressing this in a letter but doing so in person would be near impossible. I hope the music can help and give you a sense of reassurance. There is no easier way of putting this. Your father and I are going through a divorce. I know this will be a difficult transition for you, but I am going to have to ask you to be strong. Please try and keep yourself busy with school. I know that if you stick to your routines in Hogwarts and stay busy with your schoolwork things will settle sooner. I will have to ask you not to worry about me. If anything, this will mean we will have more time to connect over your studies. I know that it our marriage had lasted for a while, but his interest was his job more than his responsibilities at home. I know that you are in your early teenage years and that this a troubling time as it is. However, I ask that you do your best in avoiding trouble with your fellow students at school. I know this is easier said than done. Just know that I love you with all my heart. I will send word on a regular basis and let you know when it is best to come home. I know you will need the time to adjust again to the new layout with just the two of us. Rest assured I will try and make this as easy for you as possible.

Happy early birthday.  
Sincerely, Mom”

The rain gave the scent of copper intermingled with freshly scooped up dirt. There were no other words that could be used. Nothing more that could be said. Jeffrey had no idea of what to do, say, or feel. There was such a wild untamed conflict in his mind it was like thoughts and feelings were swept away in a vortex. All until they were torn asunder. Separate ways worlds apart.


End file.
